Winter's Hearth
by Trafalgar Neo
Summary: What's suppose to be a fun relaxing time at Law and Neo's home become stressful when Luffy forces his crew and Hearts Pirates into dangerous wintery fun by aggravating a Yeti, causing an avalanche and annoying some Snow Fairies while Law waits anxiously for some special guests to arrive who he hasn't see in years and is worried they might not like his wife since she's not human.
1. Straw Hats & Shanks Arrive

Straw Hats & Shanks Arrive

Steam from his breath danced around his lips as Law breathed out. He glanced up at the trees that surrounded him. All of the branches were bare of green leaves. Only a light dusting of snow was gracing their bare branches now. The snow at his feet was ankle deep. It was freshly fallen snow from last night. And it was a bit of a pain to walk through.

He was glad he didn't allow Neo to come with him. Despite her abilities to fly, he still didn't want her out in this weather in her condition.

His heart skipped a couple beats at the thought of his love waiting for him back at their house. He wanted to hurry up and get back to her, for multiple reasons. If he knew her at all, she was doing something right now that she shouldn't have been. He had left her with the protection of the crew, but knew she could easily get them to do what she wished.

He sighed. She could easily bend him to her will as well. At least he had his captain tone and his ability to control her through his orders. But he still had very little control over her when she started batting her pretty little eyelashes at him. He chuckled and shook his head. He was so thankful that she wasn't the time to abuse such a power.

Pulling his thoughts from her to his current task, Law looked around the white forest again. He had come out here to get some more wood. They weren't running low, but he still wanted a few more piles just in case. This was, after all, a big, important time in his and Neo's life. Very important guests were coming to spend some Christmas, Holiday, or winter fun time with them. He really wasn't sure what to call it. But their guests would soon be arriving. He had to get the wood and get back home so he could make sure Neo got plenty of rest before their guests arrived. He knew it would be a lot harder to get her to rest once they were here.

After a couple more minutes of scanning the leafless forest, he spotted the perfect tree. He lifted his sword off his shoulder and unsheathed it. He then stuck the sheath into the ground and held up his hand. "Room."

Law's Room spread over the forest, startling birds and causing them to fly off in protest. He sliced his sword, countless times, through the air. His target, divided into multiple parts. He sliced his sword several more times causing the smaller branches to separate from the tree. He then sliced up the trunk of the tree into small enough logs that Neo would easily be able to lift without her crystals, despite him not wanting her too. He sighed with a smile. He was starting to miss her, despite only seeing her about fifteen minutes ago. He had to hurry.

Law continued to slice up the tree until he got the entire thing to his desired size. He then piled them up and warped himself and the firewood back to their home. The forest around him disappeared and was replaced with the ocean, their home, the view of the mountains, and the surrounding forest. He paused to take in the view.

Their house wasn't the biggest in the world, but it fit their entire crew comfortably. It had two wings, each with twenty bedrooms that had their own bathrooms. The main part of the house was, of course at the center of the two wings. Their room was located in the center of the house on the second floor so they could have plenty of privacy from the crew and guests. At the back of the center was the large library that Law had promised he would build her someday. And he made good on that promise. She had a library that had twenty levels. Each level had a balcony with soft chairs and shelves filled with books.

The outside view was just as great. There were there three mountains, about twenty miles, behind their house. A forest surrounded each side of the house, but the front of it. They had an open view to the ocean and a beautiful view of the setting sun each night from their room or the porch.

Law looked down at the ocean. The Polar Tang was currently docked alone at the large dock. Soon it would be cuddled up to other ships. He knew the Straw Hats were going to be the first to arrive. He really wished his other guests would be the first. He wanted time with them, time that wouldn't be interrupted from the loud, obnoxious Straw Hat crew.

Chatter from a couple of his crewmates walking away from the house pulled Law from his thoughts. He turned back to his firewood and warped the majority of the wood next to the house. He then warped the rest of the wood and himself inside. The cool chill of the winter air was quickly replaced with a rush of warmth and the sounds of the crackling fire in the fireplace. The wood landed beside the fireplace while he landed near the door. He tugged off his red scarf while his eyes landed on the mess that was currently taking up the majority of the floor space. In the middle of the mess, lying on the couch fast asleep was his blue hair lover and wife.

Sighing, Law placed his scarf and coat on the hooks mounted on the wall inside one of the closets. He then threaded his way through all of the boxes. The boxes that held all of their winter decorations that they were going to put up when their guests arrived.

Once he finally got to the couch, he placed his hands on his hips and frowned down at her sleeping form. She was laying on her back with her left hand resting on her rounded stomach, light reflecting off of his ring that never left her finger, her right arm was draped over her forehead almost like she had fainted or was checking for a fever. He was about to wake her up, but paused when she started to stir. He decided to wait for her to wake up on her own.

"Hn." Neo groaned and rolled halfway over onto her right side. She cracked her eyes open then blinked the blurriness out of her electric blue orbs. She stared at Law's spotted jeans before realizing she had been caught. She glanced up at him with a sheepish grin. "Um, back already?"

"Neo," Law said in his tolerant, captain tone, the tone that he only used when he was aggravated at her for disobeying him. He crossed his arms and tapped his finger on his arm.

"Yes, my love?" Neo cooed sweetly. She stood up and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm so glad you're back. I missed you."

"I was only gone about fifteen minutes," Law said.

"But I still missed you," Neo said. She leaned into him and circled her finger over his chest. "And I know you missed me too. Or has the stressful wait for your special guests make you forget about our bond?"

"Our special guests. They're coming to see both of us," Law said. He scanned his eyes over her eyes, the eyes that were trying to make him forget she did something she wasn't suppose to. He knew he had to stand firm with her this time. "Neo, I ordered you to have the crew get those decorations out."

"But they were busy?" Neo offered.

"Neo," Law said, his tone becoming a notch deeper.

"I'm sorry, my love. But they were busy," Neo replied, pulling back from him a bit. "And, technically, you didn't _order_ me to have them do it. You just suggested it."

"Busy doing what?" Law asked.

"Uh, stuff?" Neo shrugged.

Law sighed. He rubbed his temples before placing his left hand on her hip and his right hand on her extended stomach. He glanced down at the bumps on her stomach, the crystals that the healer woman put there to monitor both Neo and their baby. "Love, you're supposed to be resting."

"Law," Neo said. She placed both her hands over Law's hand that was on her stomach. "You're worrying far too much. Baby and I are just fine. You know Healer Zinnia's still monitoring me with her crystals. I know if I start to feel tired, dizzy, or sick I'm to sit down and call for you."

"I'm sorry," Law sighed. His eyes dropped down to her stomach, her stomach that was carrying their five months conceived child. He eyes her clothing too. She was wearing a pure white, maternity dress that Topaz had made for her. It was cut short, just above the knees, and gently hugged her chest while flowing over her growing stomach. He always thought she looked really good in white. "I just want you both to be okay. I know you're going to over do it once the Straw Hats arrive."

"Law, you know that's not going to happen," Neo said. "They might not be as protective of me as you are, but they are still fiercely protective of me. None of them will let me over exert myself. I have over twenty body guards that are going to make sure I take it easy this holiday season."

"I know." Law nodded. He kissed her forehead then rested his own forehead against her, pushing his hat up. "I'm just…"

"Stressed out because your special guests haven't arrived yet," Neo said. Law nodded. "Don't worry, love. They'll be here. You know they will. They wouldn't miss this for anything."

"I know. I just want everything to go smoothly," Law said.

"Law, things aren't going to go smoothly," Neo said with a giggle. "It's pointless to stress out over wanting things to be perfect. You know nothing in life ever is, especially when Luffy is around."

"I know," Law grumbled while thinking about how bad an idea it was to have the Straw Hats come here at the same time as his special guests. It was surely a recipe for disaster.

"How about we relax a bit together before everyone starts to arrive?" Neo asked. She kissed Law's forehead then trailed kisses down to his ear. She took his earrings and earlobe into her mouth and sucked softly, earning a moan from him.

Law chuckled when her sexual thoughts passed to him. He started to run his hands over her sides. "Neo, that and this is not relaxing at all."

"So, you don't want to?" Neo asked. She sucked on his earlobe again, earning another moan from him. She trailed her hands down his toned chest, to his abs until her fingers landed on the edge of his pants. She playfully teased him before she actually started to unbutton then unzip them. Summoning an earth crystal, she threaded a vine into his pants and wrapped it around him.

"I don't think you're giving me much choice," Law said with a deep groan. He dropped his forehead to her shoulder, using all of his will power not to thrown her on the couch and take her right there. They had guests after all. Their crew, Kailen, and the healer woman were all scattered around the house at various locations and could walk in on them any second.

"We have plenty of time. You know you want me," Neo whispered, in her seductive tone she only used for moments like this. She pressed a light kiss to his ear, causing him to shiver, before retaking his ear into her mouth.

"Geez, Neo," Law groaned again at the sultry sound of her voice and when she tightened her vine on him. "I can't, ugh, Room! Shambles!"

…

Neo giggled when they landed in their bed, both undressed and under the covers. She mumbled against his ear, "That's still cheating, my love."

"It's your own fault," Law said while trailing kisses across her face and down to her neck while he spread her legs apart with his knee. "You know better than to tease me like that. You got this coming to you for doing that."

"Hn." Neo groaned and rolled her head back when he started working his way with her, tantalizingly slow. She dug her heels into the bed before wrapping her legs around him, begging for more. "Says the one who's teasing me now. Do you have to do it so slow? This is torture!"

"What?" Law asked innocently. He sucked on her neck a couple times before adding, "We _have_ to take it slow. I _do not_ want that healer woman interrupting us. I won't be happy if she does. Right now, all I want is you."

"Hn." Neo groaned again when he backed up his words with actions. "You two are just never-uh-going to get along-hn-when it comes-ah-to me, are you?"

"Nope," Law mumbled against her skin. He nipped, licked, and sucked her neck, enjoying every single moan and groan he could pull from her.

"Traaaaaaaaaa! Neoooooooo!"

Law paused. He groaned and tucked his eyes into Neo's neck at the sound of the all too familiar, currently unwanted, slightly muffled voice shrieking out to them from outside the house. "No. Not now. Why now? Why?"

"Hm," Neo hummed. "They're early."

"Traaaaaaaaaa! Neoooooooo!" Luffy called again.

"I'm going to kill him," Law growled.

Neo laughed, her chiming bells ringing out through their room. She said, "We better get up."

"No!" Law about snapped.

"But, Law, they-"

"They will be taken care of by the crew," Law replied. He turned his eyes to hers and pressed his hips to hers again. "We have a few minutes before the crew, or the Straw Hats, comes looking for us. You got me so hot right now. I want you for as long as I can have you."

"Law, we-ah ha-have plenty of time later t-tonight," Neo said, trying to stay coherent.

"Do you really want to stop? You're as hot as I am," Law groaned while trailing kisses over her neck.

"N-no! K-keep going!" Neo ran her hands through his hair. "A few more minutes! Don't stop! Not now! That's so good!"

"Good," Law mumbled before sucking on her neck again.

…

"Hm." Shachi hummed from his spot on one of the library couches. He lowered the book he was reading from his face and glanced towards the door that let them view into the living room. He could see the silhouette of Luffy's straw hat passing over the window of the door multiple times. "The Straw Hats are early."

"Captain's not going to like that," Penguin said. He turned the page of his own book and crossed his legs. "I wonder where they are. Neo was so excited that everyone was finally going to get to see her library."

"The captain headed out a little while ago for some more fire wood," Bepo said. "I thought I heard him return a minute ago."

"You did," a crewmate said while passing by the room. He stopped to look at his crewmates. "But the captain warped them from the living room so…"

"Right," Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin said at the same time. They all knew what that meant. And they all knew not to question or think much on it.

"So go let them in," Shachi then said.

"You go let them in," the crewmate said before heading on down the hall. "I've got to go finish fixing up that one sleigh."

"You still don't have that think fixed?" Shachi asked.

"I'm working on it!" the crewmate's distance voice said before a door opened and closed.

Shachi then glanced over at Penguin and Bepo. He asked, "So who's going to go greet them?"

"Why don't you?" Penguin asked.

"Why don't you?" Shachi shot back.

"I'm at the really good part," Penguin said, waving his book.

"Well, so am I," Shachi said, waving his own book to imitate Penguin.

"I'll go let them in," Bepo said, wanting to avoid a fight to whose book is more interesting that he knew was coming. He stood up from his chair, tossed the book he was holding onto the seat, and then headed for the living room. He glanced around the house as he went, wondering where the rest of his crewmates were. He paused when noticed all of the boxed in the living room. He shivered at the lecture he knew was coming from their captain later. They were supposed to get those boxes out for Neo. He shrugged it off. He knew Neo would easily get them out of trouble when the captain was ready to turn on his fury towards them. He stopped at the door and opened it. "Hey, Straw Hats."

"Hey!" Luffy cried instantly stepping into the house without an invitation.

"Come on in," Bepo said to the rest of the Straw Hat crew.

"Thanks," Nami replied. They followed their captain into the house while mumbling their own gratitude for being let inside. They inspected the cozy foyer of the house. It held two closets that would easily accommodate both their crews coats and shoes, if chosen to take them off.

"So where are they?" Luffy asked once Bepo and his crew joined him in the living room. He had his hands planted on his hips and looking around for Law and Neo.

"They're busy at the moment," Bepo replied. He looked at the additional wood sitting by the fireplace. The fire was small, but not too small. It was the perfect size to warm the house while not suffocating with his fur. Neo was sure to keep the temperature at a steady temperature for them all. "The captain was outside chopping up some wood. I'm sure they'll be here in a minute or two."

"Wow! This place is amazing!" Nami exclaimed as she looked around the impressive room. Other than all of the boxes in the room, there were two L shaped couches with rectangular coffee tables in front of each of the wings, eight large armchairs would hold two people snuggly-or Jean Bart alone-and small round coffee tables on each side of the chairs and two floor to ceiling bookshelves.

"Indeed. It is very impressive," Robin said. She looked to their left were there were two open doors that lead to the dinning room and the kitchen. She turned her eyes to straight a head of them led to the hallway that led to the guest wings and right into the library that Neo constantly talked about. Her eyes then pulled to the right where a staircase led up to the second floor balcony.

"I would offer to take you on a tour, but Neo really wants to do that herself," Bepo said. He hung his head. "I'm sorry."

"No worries," Franky said. He walked into the living room and sat down on one of the couches. He crossed his legs while putting his arms on the back of the couch. "We can wait."

"How is Neo doing?" Chopper asked. His tone and eyes were filled with concern. "Is she having any pregnancy troubles?"

"She had a bit of an issue last month," Bepo replied, without thinking.

"What?!" The Straw Hats gasped. Robin was the only one who didn't scream, but her eyes clearly showed she was equally concerned about their friend.

"Is she all right?!" Sanji asked.

"How's the baby?!" Nami asked.

"What happened?!" Chopper demanded. "Where is she?! I want to check her out!"

"Was it something serious?!" Brook asked.

"Answer us!" Zoro said.

"Say something!" Usopp shouted. "We're seriously worried here!"

"Calm down, everyone. Neo and the baby are-" Bepo said, but not fast enough.

"Neo! I'm coming!" Luffy cut him off while making a mad dashed off through the living room. He bolted down the hall that led to one of the guest wings, leaving a trail of dust behind him.

"Uh," Bepo blinked. Soon muffled curses and shouts came from disgruntled Heart Pirates as Luffy bolted into every single room he came across followed by several bangs and crashes of stuffy the rubber man knocked over.

"That guy," Zoro grumbled while rubbing his temple to try and stave off an on coming headache that his captain was creating.

"But Neo is fine, isn't she?" Robin asked, way calmer than anyone else. She walked up to the bear, anxious for his answer.

"Yes." Bepo nodded, grateful that at least one of the Straw Hats could remain calm. "She was just over doing it a little bit with playing with the Yeti and the Snow Fairies. It put the baby in a bit of a stressful situation and caused Neo to get extremely tired and dizzy. Everything settled down after a day of forced rest. Since then Healer Zinnia has been monitoring her closely. As long as Neo remains calm and doesn't over do it, she's been fine."

"Well, that's a relief," Nami said with a sigh.

"I'm so glad," Chopper said with tears streaming down his furry cheeks. "But I still would like to speak with the healer about this. I want to help keep an eye on Neo's condition while we're here."

"Neo!" Luffy screamed as he ran past the living room and down the hall to the other guest wing. More muffled curses, crashes, and threats were heard for the havoc he was causing.

"Now if only we could calm him down," Brook said.

"I don't think that's going to happen until he sees Neo," Sanji said. He then recalled something that Bepo had said. "You all have a Yeti and Snow Fairies here?"

"We do." Bepo nodded. He waved for the crew to follow him farther into the living room. They all sat down around the couches, Zoro choose to sit on one of the chairs to accommodate his swords better. "Neo befriended them shortly after we arrived here. At first, they thought we were here to kill them or trap them. Apparently, a lot of people are trying to do that for profit."

"That's terrible," Nami said.

"Yeah. But since we moved here, we've been protecting them," Bepo said. "They're really grateful for it."

"So what do these Snow Fairies do?" Chopper asked.

"Create snow and ice," Bepo replied. "People want them to use for snow resorts or as exotic pets."

"So they want to turn these fairies into slaves?" Brook asked.

"Yeah." Bepo sighed. He then smiled. "But we haven't had any trouble. With the reputation of our captain and crew, no ones really been around here since we build this house here."

"I'm glad," Nami said with a smile.

"Let's just hope Luffy doesn't find out about them," Zoro said. He placed his hands behind his head and started up at the ceiling. A sweat drop formed on his forehead as they all had the exact same thought.

"That's not going to happen," They, including Bepo all said. "He's going to cause trouble with them."

…

"We better hurry up," Neo said while pulling her dress back over her head. "We need to stop Luffy from driving everyone crazy."

"Yeah, yeah," Law grumbled. While pulling on his jeans he thought about the muffled shouts and bangs they've been hearing for the past few minutes. He was at least relieved that the rubber man didn't find their room yet.

Neo adjusted her dress then turned her back to Law. Lifting up her hair up to reveal her zipper, she asked, "Would you mind?"

"Sure." Law pulled his own zipper up before taking a hold of hers. He placed a kiss on her back before pulling the zipper up. As she released her hair, he slid his hands over her arms and kissed her neck. "You really should just let me kill him."

"No, my love," Neo said. She tilted her head to give him better access to her. "You're not killing Luffy. We love Luffy."

"You love him. I barely tolerate him," Law mumbled against her neck.

She turned in his hold and pecked his lips. "Come on. Let's go before Luffy finally finds his way to our room."

"Fine." Law let her take his hand and guide him out of their room. "But if he, or anyone else, stresses you out and causes problems with your pregnancy, I _will_ kill them."

"Yeah. Sure you will," Neo giggled. She knew full well that he wouldn't kill anyone. She loved the Straw Hats, and he did too despite refusing to admit it on a daily bases. Plus, he wouldn't do anything to upset her. Of course, that didn't mean that he wouldn't separate body parts. She knew he would do that without hesitating and, depending on her mood, she would most likely find it really funny. "Besides, I think you'd have some competition with Healer Zinnia and Godfather on who would kill them first. But neither of you would since none of you want to upset me."

"Speaking of Red Haired," Law said. "When is he going to be arriving?"

"Judging from his location, he's about an hour and a half away from here. I can't wait. I feel like I haven't seen him, in person, for ages," Neo replied while focusing on the red haired man's location.

Law nodded. It had been over a year since they had seen the man in person. He opened their door for them and they stepped out into the hall. She glanced across the hall and into the door that led to her library before leading them both towards the stairs. She squealed happily when she finally saw the Straw Hats down in their living room. Her eyes lit up with joy at seeing her friends. "Hi, guys!"

"Neo!" They called back.

Neo summoned her wind crystals. Before she could use them, Law warped them down to the living room. He then gave her a disapproving grunt for almost using her crystals unnecessarily. She smiled and shrugged innocently at him before she broke away from him. She rushed over to her friends just as they rushed over to her. Chopper was the first to jump into her open arms. Or he would have if he didn't pause in fear of hurting her and the baby. She gave him a sympathetic grin before picking him up and hugging him. "Chopper! You don't have to be scared of touching me! I'm not going to break!"

"Neo!" Chopper cried. Tears ran down his furry cheeks as he hugged her. "I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"Of course not," Neo replied. She hugged him for a few seconds longer before moving him to her hip, like she was holding a baby. She then accepted hugs and kisses from the rest of the Straw Hats. "It so good to see you all!"

"It's good to see you too, Neo," Usopp said. "Sorry for the early arrival. Luffy wouldn't stop bugging us until we caved into him and headed here."

"It's all right," Neo replied, giving the sniper a one armed hug. "You're always welcome here."

"Look at you!" Nami squealed. She took Neo's hand and took in the blue haired woman's extended stomach and the glow she held. "You're glowing!"

"You're absolutely beautiful," Sanji said before pecking Neo's cheek.

"The charmer as always," Neo replied while kissing his cheek at the same time he kissed hers. "Are you ready for some heavy winter cooking?"

Law cleared his throat and crossed his arms. Neo glanced over her shoulder at him and stuck her tongue out. _'I am cooking with Sanji. There's nothing you can do or say to stop me.'_

' _I can easily order you to not cook.'_ He shot her a smirk when she flinched at his threat.

' _You will not order me to not cook.'_

' _Uh huh. Keep it up, love. And I'll punish you by doing this…'_

Neo's face flushed upon his shared sexual thought.

"Oh my gosh! Neo! You're all red!" Chopper shrieked. "Sit down! Immediately!"

"I'm fine, Chopper," Neo replied with a small squeak in her tone. She cleared her throat. "I'm fine."

"You. Sit. Down," Chopper ordered. He pointed, with authority, to the couch.

"Better do as he says," Franky said, plopping back down on the couch. "He's been worried about you since we set sail here."

"All right," Neo conceded. She walked over to the couch and sat down. "But only for a moment. I really want to show you all around."

"Don't worry about that," Chopper said, looking Neo over. "You can show us around the house later. Right now, you're resting."

"It would probably best to wait for Red Haired to get here," Robin said, sitting down beside Neo. "Then you can show us all around together and not have to do it twice."

"I suppose that make sense." Neo blinked. "And it would make you all happy."

"It would," Chopper said with a firm nod.

"Neo!" Luffy then shout as he ran back into the living room. He paused when he saw her. Tears spilled out of his eyes. He ran over to her with his arms extended out wide. "Neo! I was so worried about you!"

"Hold it," Sanji said as he and Zoro jumped in their captain's way and planted a foot, each, in the rubber man's face.

"Don't be stupid, Luffy," Zoro said. "You can't go jumping on her like that. She needs to take it easy."

"Let me go! I want to hug her!" Luffy cried. He waved his arms and legs wildly, trying to escape their hold.

"Then be gentle!" Sanji shouted. "If you're not, and you cause trouble, we'll cuff you with sea prism stone handcuffs!"

"Hey! That's harsh!" Luffy complained. He stopped struggling and frowned.

"Are you going to behave?" Sanji asked, but it was too late. Luffy had slipped passed him and Zoro and was now hugging Neo.

"Neo!" Luffy exclaimed. He rubbed his cheek against hers while smashing Chopper in-between them. "I've missed you so much! I was so worried about you!"

"Let me out of here!" Chopper begged, but Luffy didn't move. "You're squashing me! If you hurt Neo, so help me, I'll sedate you for an entire year!"

"Excitable as always, isn't he, Captain?" Bepo asked while he and Law stood off to the side just watching the display before them.

Law sighed, aggravated at Luffy's behavior. Slicing the rubber man up was becoming more and more likely.

"What's going on in here?" a female voice asked.

"Huh?" Luffy asked when he looked to the new voice. He blinked at the deep green, streaked with grey, haired, glasses wearing, and white lab coated over brown trousers and a button up maroon shirt, woman before him. "Who are you?"

"Luffy, everyone, this is Healer Zinnia," Neo replied. "She's the one who took care of be back on Luminous when I was poisoned."

"So you're the one who saved her," Nami said.

"I am." Healer Zinnia nodded. She narrowed her eyebrows, crossed her arms, and leaned against the doorframe. "It's nice to meet you all, but I would greatly appreciate it if you all would keep it down."

"Is there a problem?" Chopper asked.

"Not yet. But the Princess's blood pressure is slightly higher than I want it," Healer Zinnia said. "Please, tone it down a bit."

"So, you're the healer that Neo and Law have told us about," Chopper said. He jumped off the couch and walked over to the healer. "I would really appreciate it if you would tell me everything that's been going on with Neo's pregnancy."

Healer Zinnia blinked down at the reindeer. She then looked over at Neo for conformation. She asked, "Is this what you wish, Princess?"

"Yes, Healer Zinnia," Neo replied. "It's fine. Go ahead and tell him whatever he wants to know."

"Very well, Princess," Healer Zinnia said. She head back out the door and beckoned for Chopper to follow her. "Let's go to my office. We can talk in quiet there."

"All right!" Chopper nodded before following after the older woman.

"Boy, she really is loyal to you, isn't she?" Nami whispered as she leaned closer to Neo. "She really has an air of authority and attitude about her."

"She just worries a lot," Neo replied. "I think it's mostly because I'm her princess."

"That make sense," Robin said. "Royalty often gets special treatment."

Neo laughed nervously. "I'd rather she didn't do that. But I can live with it."

Just then a cool blast of cold air flowed into the room. They all looked up to see two people walk into the living room a minute later. One the Straw Hats knew, the other they didn't.

"Well, it looks like we have a full house," the one they didn't know, a man with green hair, said.

"Hey, guys!" Topaz greeted them with a smile. "Wow! I didn't expect to see you for another hour or two!"

"We caught some good wind," Sanji replied before hugging the orange haired woman. "You're looking good."

"Thanks, Sanji," Topaz replied while returning the hug.

"So who's the guy?" Zoro asked, eying the stranger.

"This is my brother, Kailen," Neo replied. "Kailen, this is Sanji, Zoro, Usopp, Franky, Brook, Luffy, Robin, and Nami. Chopper just left the room with Healer Zinnia."

"Hey!" The Straw Hats greeted.

"Wow!" Nami exclaimed. "You didn't say you're brother was such a hottie!"

"Huh?!" Everyone in the room gasped.

"Did I hear that right?" Usopp asked. He twisted his pinky finger in his ear. "Did Nami really just say a man was hot? That's not normal!"

Kailen laughed. He took Nami's hand in his and kissed it. He said, "It's very nice to finally meet you all."

"Hey! Don't kiss her hand!" Sanji snapped. "You're not allowed to do that!"

"Shut up, Sanji!" Nami growled while punching Sanji. She then turned her attention back to Kailen. Her cheeks burning red as her eyelashes fluttered at the Elemental man before her. "It's nice to meet you too. Ignore him. He's a moron."

"Am I dreaming?" Usopp asked. "Is this really happening? Nami's only ever expressed interest in money. I don't recall a single time she's taken a real interest in a man."

Luffy laughed. "So weird! Nami's acting weird!"

"Good grief," Zoro said before closing his eye. "I don't want to deal with this."

"Perhaps it's the warm setting of the fire?" Brook asked. He got up from the couch and pulled out his violin. He pulled the bow across the string and played a soft song for them. "This warm, wintry setting we're in is very romantic. We could been seeing the beginning of a romance blooming."

"No chance there," Usopp, Luffy, Sanji, and Franky said at the same time in the same dull tone. "This is just a dream."

"Perhaps," Brook said while he continued to play his song.

"I'm going to go back to the library since we're doing nothing here," Bepo said to Law. "I want to finish my book before all the real fun starts."

Law nodded. He watched his navigator walk off before walking over to one of the windows. He stared out to the ocean. The Sunny was now snuggled up beside the Polar Tang, looking like they have always belonged beside each other, like they had been life long friends. Or maybe he was just dreaming. Ships couldn't be friends.

"Law," Neo called softly as she walked up to him. He put his arms around her shoulders while she put her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. "Don't be so anxious. They'll be here."

"I know." Law nodded despite still eyeing the outside world for his special guests.

Neo sighed. She pulled away from him. Taking his hand in hers, she forced him away from the window and over to the couch. She guided him into the corner then sat down with him, tucking herself into his side. She pecked his cheek before resting her head on his shoulder. She said, "Sit here with me and enjoy the music."

Law looked around. Brook was standing near the fire, looking very calm while he played his tune. His eyes drifted from the skeleton and over the rest of the Straw Hats. Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Franky were already snoozing to the soothing melody flowing through the warm room. Robin had her eyes closed, but he knew she wasn't sleeping since there was a light sway of her head to the music. Nami and Kailen were sitting together on the couch, talking to each other like they weren't strangers. He then looked down at the woman in his arms. She has fallen asleep against him. He pressed a kiss into her hair then wrapped his arms around her and let his eyelids drift closed. Perhaps Neo was right. There was nothing to worry about. His special guests would be here before he knew it. And everything would be just fine.

…

Law had no idea how long he had slept for. But it was Neo's excitable nature that shook him from his slumber. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes just as she pulled from his embrace, taking her warmth with her.

"He's here!" Neo exclaimed while flying to the door with her wings out.

"Neo! You better put your coat on! And stop flying!" Law called, but it was too late. Neo had the door open and flew out before he even finished. He sighed and jumped off the couch.

"Shanks!" Luffy cried as he followed after Neo, without his coat.

Law grumbled while the Straw Hats laughed at the childlike nature of Neo and Luffy. He grabbed his coat, and Neo's, and then bolted out the door. He grumbled while he watched Neo pick Luffy up with her winds and flew them both down to the newest ship that was docked with the other two.

…

"Godfather!" Neo cried.

"Neo!" Shanks called back. He jumped over the edge of his ship and landed perfectly on the docks. He held out his arms for her, which she gladly flew into.

"I've missed you!" Neo cried as she buried her face into his chest. "I've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too, Neo," Shanks said. He wrapped his left arm around her waist while he stroked her hair with his right hand. He then held her out at arms length to take in her extended stomach. "And how is baby doing?"

"Baby is just fine," Neo replied.

"Shanks!" Luffy called.

"Hey, Luffy!" Shanks cried happily. Neo stepped back a little bit just as Luffy pounced on Shanks, making them both fall to the docks and making Luffy's hat fall of his head. The older man ruffled the younger one's hair. "Just as lively as ever! How have you been, Luffy?"

"Great! I'm so glad to see you! It's been far too long!" Luffy said with a huge grin. "And now that you're here! The fun can really begin!"

Law was still grumbling as he made his way across the deck. He tossed Neo's coat at her, it landed on her head, and then crossed his arms over his chest. "Put that on. Now."

"Oh, Law," Neo said, pulling off the coat. "I'm nature. Cold weather doesn't bother me."

"No arguing, _little girl_ ," Law said in his captain tone.

Neo sighed and pulled on her coat. She held out her arms. "Happy?"

"No. But it'll do," Law said. He locked eyes with Shanks. "Red Haired."

"Little Pirate Surgeon." Shanks smirked.

Law twitched and scowled, but didn't say anything.

Neo giggled when Law just turned away from the red haired man. Despite know it wouldn't do any good, she said, "Behave you two."

"Yes, ma'am," Shanks said with a chuckle. He ran his eyes over the rest of the Straw Hats who decided to stay up by the house. "I see your whole crew is here."

"Yup!" Luffy nodded. "And they can't wait to finally meet you in person! Where's your crew?"

"They were busy and couldn't make it," Shanks said as he and Luffy stood up. He ruffled Neo's bangs before pulling her to his side. "But they send their love."

"I understand. I hope I can see them again soon," Neo said with a smile. "When you go back, give them my love too."

"I'll do that." Shanks nodded. He noticed the irritated look on Law's face. "Let's go back inside now. I think your lover is about to lose his mind."

"Never mind him," Neo said. "He's just worried about his guests coming."

"Of course." Shanks nodded. "This is a very special visit, isn't it?"

"It is," Neo said with a nod.

"Then I promise I'll be on my best behavior," Shanks said as he guided her and Luffy towards the house.

"Hey! What's that?" Luffy asked, pointing out in front of them.

"What's what?" Shanks questioned. He looked to where Luffy was pointing, but didn't see anything.

Law carefully scanned his eyes over the same area, but didn't see anything either.

"Uh oh," Neo said.

"What is it, Neo?" Law asked.

She laughed nervously before saying, "I think the Snow Fairies came out to play."

"What?!" Luffy shrieked. The three turned their eyes to the youngest captain when he shrieked. His arms were flapping wildly as he dodged several snowballs that were flying at him. He dodged most of the snowballs, but a couple caught him in the face before he was able to grab one of the creatures flying around. "What the heck is this thing?"

"Hey! Let me go!" The creature said while trying to squirm out of the Luffy's firm grip.

Luffy blinked in confusion. He stared down at the transparent winged creature in his hand.

Law sighed. Things just went from bad to worse. And soon his guests would be right in the middle of all this.


	2. Tour, Snow Fairies, & Decorating

Tour, Snow Fairies, & Decorating

"What the heck?" Luffy asked as he continued to inspect the creature in his hold. Her pointy ears wiggled in annoyance while her silvery blue eyes glared up at the human holding her. Her skin was snow white and her long hair was a whitish blue color. Her tube top, bikini bottoms, wrist and ankle bands were light green and furry. "What are you?"

"Uh, Luffy, you might want to let her go," Neo called. "Snow Fairies really don't like being-"

The Snow Fairy sucked in air and blew it out. Ice formed over Luffy's head and shoulders. He shivered, his fingers uncurling from the fairy. Wrapping his arms around himself, he stuttered, "S-s-so c-c-c-cold!"

The fairy flew out of Luffy's now loose hand and over to Neo. She dove into Neo's hair, shifted, then poked her head out and stuck her tongue out at Luffy before disappearing back inside Neo's blue locks. Neo said, "It's all right, Starlit. Luffy didn't mean any harm. He's not going to hurt you. He was just curious. You can come back out now."

A few seconds passed before Starlit cautiously poked her head back out of Neo's hair. She looked at Luffy, who was still shivering, then looked up at Neo. She said, "Are you sure? I'll freeze him to death if he touches me again."

"That thing can talk?" Shanks asked. He blinked several times while leaning down to the creature in his goddaughter's hair.

"That _thing_ has a name!" Starlit snapped, glaring up at the red haired man.

"My apologies," Shanks said with a nervous laugh. "I didn't mean any harm or to insult you. I was just a bit surprised. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Shanks. I am Neo's godfather."

"Of course I know who you are. Neo has told us all about you and her friends long before your arrival here. She really loves you all a lot. Besides, your red hair is a dead give away to which one you are. I'm Starlit," Starlit replied. She flew out of Neo's hair and up to Shanks. She tilted her head with a smile. "I must say I really like your hair. That color doesn't appear around here much. Mostly, it's nothing but white around here. Or these soft colors of blues and greens that I'm wearing. My people really have dull taste when it comes to color."

"Well, thank you very much," Shanks said. He held up his hand for Starlit to land it. He smiled when the fairy sat down on his palm. "And please, forgive Luffy. He just gets overly excited when something new appears before him that he's never seem before."

"Well, he needs to learn to keep his hands to himself!" Starlit growled over her shoulder at the young pirate captain.

"S-s-s-so c-c-c-cold!" Luffy cried again.

Law sighed and pitched the bridge of his nose. He said, "Neo, you better help him out."

Neo nodded in agreement while summoning ten of her fire crystals around Luffy. She flared them put and thawed out the young pirate. She said, "Luffy, the Snow Fairies don't like being handled like that. Be gentler next time. Okay? They can easily freeze you solid down to your core. You'll die. No amount of fire crystals will save you."

"O-o-o-okay. _Achoo!_ " Luffy said with a sneeze. "I need a thicker coat."

"Hey! What's going on?!" Usopp called as he and Chopper ran down to the docks.

"We saw Luffy get sprayed with something," Chopper said. He looked at his captain, who was still thawing out. "Did you use your crystals on him, Neo?"

"Not exactly," Neo replied.

"I did it," Starlit said, turning her eyes to look at the new arrivals.

"What?!" Usopp and Chopper shrieked. "What is that thing?!"

"She's a Snow Fairy," Neo replied.

"She's so cute," Chopper said. He pushed up on his hooves to try and get a better look before climbing up on Usopp's shoulder.

"So that's a Snow Fairy," Usopp said, taking in the fairy in the older pirate's hand. "Bepo told us about them when we arrived. But I didn't think we'd actually get to see one."

"They come around here a lot," Neo replied. "But, usually, they stay hidden when strangers are around because of what's happened to them."

"I was hiding. But since these are your friends, I thought maybe it would be fine to come see you," Starlit said. She then shot a glare at Luffy. "I didn't know I was going to get manhandle. You jerk!"

"What?! Don't yell at me!" Luffy shrieked. "I was just curious! You're a funny little thing!"

"Says the one who's made of rubber!" Starlit shot back. She jumped to her feet and held out her right hand. The tips of her fingers began to glow and sparkle. "If you want, I can bury you under an avalanche of snow!"

"What?!" Luffy screamed with stars in his eyes. He zoomed right up to Shanks' hand and looked at the fairy. "Can you really create an avalanche?!"

"Of course I can!" Starlit huffed. "It's easy."

"But you're not going to do that," Neo said. She reached out and pushed Starlit's hand down with her pinky finger. "This is a very important occasion. Please, no avalanches and no snowstorms. Law's guests will be arriving sometime soon, hopefully by tonight. He's already stressed out enough about this and my pregnancy. So, please, please, please, be on your best behavior. And that includes you, Luffy."

"Okay," Starlit said. She crossed her arms over her chest. "While I can't speak for the other Snow Fairies, I'll behave. As long as he doesn't manhandle me again that is."

"Luffy?" Neo turned her eyes to the rubber man.

"Okay, okay," Luffy replied. He placed his hands behind his head. "I'll behave."

"Don't believe him, Neo," Usopp whispered into Neo's ear after taking a step closer to her.

"You know he can't behave for a single second," Chopper added.

"It'll be fine," Neo said. She smirked at Law when she caught his dubious glare at her. She giggled and slipped her hand into his then kissed his cheek. "Come on, love. Let's go back to the house. I really want to show everyone around."

"Let the crew do that," Law said while leading her and their guests up to their house.

"Law, I'm showing them around," Neo said. She frowned at him when he looked at her. "I'm doing it."

"Is there something wrong?" Shanks asked.

Neo opened her mouth to reply, but Law beat her to it. He said, "Neo over extended herself and put both herself and the baby under distress."

"Law!" Neo protested.

"What?" Law shrugged. "It's true. You shouldn't have been out playing so much, _little girl_."

"Neo," Shanks said in his fatherly tone. He crossed his arms over his check and tapped his finger on his elbow.

Neo flinched. She glanced up at him. Battling her eyelashes at him and taking on the cutest and most innocent look she could possibly manage, even though she knew it was a long shot. She chirped, "Yes, Godfather?"

Shanks sighed inwardly. He forced himself not to flinch at the look she was giving him. He heard a small giggle from the Snow Fairy that was now sitting on his left shoulder. Knowing the giggle was because Neo could easily make him cave, he chose to ignore the little creature and focus on his goddaughter. He said, "Neo, did you over do it and put yourself and your child in danger?"

Neo opened her mouth to insist she was fine, but a warning glare and hand squeeze from Law stopped her. She sighed and said, "Yes, Godfather. I over did it a bit. But I'm getting plenty of rest now. And Healer Zinnia is carefully monitoring me. Her crystals are currently on my stomach. See?"

"I see." Shanks when Neo flattened out her dress against her skin to show the outline of her crystals that were monitoring the baby and her own blood pressure. He stroked his chin in thought before settling his eyes on the Straw Hat crew. He easily noticed some of them were nervous, or cautious, of his presence. He chuckled. He definitely was Neo's godfather, but he was also still Emperor. It was natural for this younger crew to be nervous around him, except for Luffy of course. "Don't worry. I'm here as Neo's godfather, not as an Emperor. I won't do anything to harm any of you. It would upset Neo and Luffy if I did."

"Yeah. We're all friends here," Luffy said with a smile. "There's no need to be so tense, guys. Relax."

"If you say so," Zoro said, still cautiously eyeing the Emperor.

"Even if we're on friendly terms, it's still intimidating being this close to an Emperor," Sanji said. He finished his cigarette then smothered it out before turning back to the front door. "Let's get inside. It's getting colder out here."

"Starlit," Neo warned.

"It's not me!" Starlit protested. "It's the others!"

Neo sighed and looked around. She easily sensed them flying around in the woods, carefully inspecting the pirates, and messing with the temperature of the island in paranoia and as a warning. "I'm sorry, Starlit. You are correct."

"No worries. I'll go have a talk with them," Starlit said. She flew off of Shanks' shoulder and disappeared into the woods nearby.

"Let's go inside and start the tour!" Neo cheered.

"Neo," Law said, but was too late. Neo released his hand, grabbed Luffy's, and disappeared into the house. He sighed. "That child."

"So cute," Chopper said, still on Usopp's shoulder.

Shanks laughed and said, "Well, you can't really blame her. This is the first time we've all came here to your house. And I must say, it is pretty impressive. You've done well in taking care of her, Little Pirate Surgeon."

"Yeah. Thanks," Law grumbled before stalking into the house.

Shanks and the Straw Hats laughed at the sulking captain before following him inside. Once inside they all shed their coats and looked to Neo for their guided tour. She smiled at them and said, "Finally! I can show you all around!"

"Neo," Law said. He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Aw, come on, Law," Neo pleaded. "This will be just a quick tour. It's not like our house is that big."

"I have to agree with Trafalgar on this one, Princess," Healer Zinnia said as she walked into the living room. She pushed her glassed up higher on her nose then crossed her arms over her chest.

"And I agree as well," Kailen said from the couch where he still was sitting. He crossed his arms and legs while giving his little sister a pointed look. "And that's three against one. It will be more if we bring the entire crew in on this."

"Hey! That's not fair!" Neo pouted.

"Now, now. I won't tolerate you all ganging up on my beloved goddaughter," Shanks said. He stepped closer to Neo and scooped her up into his arms. "There. Now you won't over do anything."

"Yeah!" Neo cheered. She wrapped her arms around the man's neck and kissed his cheek. "Why did I think of this before?! With Godfather carrying me, I won't be using any of my energy! I love you so much!"

"I love you too," Shanks cooed back.

"Well, she does have a point there," Nami said.

"So, can I?" Neo collapsed her hands together and batted her eyelashes at Law, Kailen, and Healer Zinnia. "Please?"

All three of the protesters sighed in complete and udder defeat. Law said, "Fine."

"Fine with me as well," Healer Zinnia said with another sigh. "But make this a quick tour. And only show them the east wing of the house since that's where they'll be staying. It looks exactly like the west wing so no point in showing them both. And only show the one of the rooms since they too are designed the same."

"Sounds good to me," Kailen said with a shrug. He stood up from the couch and walked over to them. He smiled down at Nami. "I think I'll join you on your tour."

Nami giggled and batted her eyelashes at the Elemental man. She said, "I think I'd like that."

"I think I'd like to keep my breakfast down," Zoro said while rolling his eyes. "I'm not going to enjoy this trip if I have to listen to them making nice like this the whole entire time we're here."

"No worries," Usopp said. He took a step closer to Zoro to whisper. "At least we can throw an endless supply of snowballs at them when they get to sickening."

"I like that." Zoro grinned. "Sounds good to me."

Neo giggled at her friends before giving the signal to proceed with their tour. She said, "Let's go then! Law, you are coming with us? Or are you going to stay here and sulk?"

"I'm not sulking. And I am going with you," Law said. He shoved his hands into his pockets and stepped over to her and Shanks. "I need to make sure Straw Hat doesn't annoy you. I don't want your blood pressure rising any more today."

"Hey!" Luffy protested.

"Let's be off then," Shanks said.

"Mhm." Neo nodded just as Shanks headed off towards the hallways at the back of the living room. She pointed to their right when they stepped into the hallway. Shanks nodded and headed down the hall. Everyone's eyes glanced over the paintings on the walls.

"What are these paintings of?" Robin asked while glancing at one of a beach with crystals similar to Neo's sticking up out of the ground. "Are these of Luminous?"

"Some of them are," Neo replied. "Others are just landscapes with crystals positioned in them."

"So who painted them?" Usopp asked. He stepped closer to a painting of a white wolf with its tail curled around a green crystal. "This is really good. The details on this are outstanding. It looks like you can reach out and actually touch the fur of the wolf. The paint's high quality too, isn't it?"

"I suppose it is. It's homemade paint," Neo replied.

"Homemade?" Sanji asked, turning his eyes to Neo. "Did you make these paintings and paint?"

"No, but Kailen did," Neo replied.

Kailen laughed nervously when the pirates turned their eyes towards him. Nami asked, "Did you really do all of these?"

"Yeah." Kailen's cheeks flushed. He rubbed the back of his neck and added, "I get bored while sitting out here. I wanted something to do that would take a while to complete. Painting came to mind. And, on one of our sailing trips, I picked up some books on how to make your own paint. Once you get the hang of it, it's really easy to do. It's the same with learning how to paint. It took a while, but I have plenty of time to practice. I've even sold a few paintings when we've sailed to other islands."

"That's so impressive," Nami replied. "I don't have the patience to do something like this. They're very beautiful."

"Thanks. But I'm sure you could do it," Kailen said.

"Nope. She couldn't," the Straw Hats, but for Robin, said. "She has no patients what so ever."

"Hey! Shut up, you idiot!" Nami growled while whacking them all over their heads. "Jerks!"

"You all are so full of energy," Kailen said with a chuckle. "Way more than the Heart Pirates."

"Too much energy if you ask me," Law huffed.

Neo rested her chin on Shanks' shoulder. Her eyes sparkled at Law. _'You had plenty of energy a few minutes ago. You know? When we were up in our room.'_

 _'Shut up and get this tour over with.'_ Law's cheeks flushed.

"All right," Neo said. She pointed to the door closest to them. "Let's go in there."

"As you wish," Shanks said.

"All me to get the door," Brook said, taking a hold of the doorknob and pushing it open for them. He stepped aside and allowed Neo and Shanks to enter first. Neo flicked on the switch with her toes, letting the light illuminate the room. She smiled when the majority of the Straw Hats gasped upon entering the room.

"Wow! This is incredible!" Luffy exclaimed with a laugh. He ran his eyes over the large bed inside of the pale blue room. It was placed in the middle of the wall to their left. To the bed's left, when facing it, was a big closet, and to the bed's right was the window with a padded bench. Two large arm chairs with a simple round table was tucked in the far corner of the room with a bookshelf decorated with several books. Across from the bed was the bathroom, where Luffy immediately ran. "So cool! It has a bathtub and a shower!"

"That tile is beautiful," Robin exclaim while examining the pale blue tile in the bathroom. She then ran her eyes over the vanity, matching stool, the double door closet, and the sink. "This must have cost you all a fortune."

"Try four fortunes," Law mumbled. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall near the room's door.

"It didn't cost that much. Besides, we had to make sure to accommodate all of our guests. We had to make sure the rooms would be suitable for someone like Jean Bart and Bepo while also fitting regular size people," Neo protested. She shot Law a smirk. "Besides, you and the crew stole plenty of treasure to build this for me. And I love you so much for coming through on your promise to build me a library."

"Yeah! You tell him!" Shanks cheered with a laugh when Law didn't say anything.

"Admit it, Law," Kailen said, elbowing Law on the arm. "You would spend ever single beli you have if it means Neo's happiness."

Law growled, his cheeks flushed and he let his hat fall over his eyes when everyone snickered at him and the truth that Kailen spoke.

"After all this time, he's still so in love with her," Chopper said. "It's so cute."

"They're like teenagers," Franky added.

"I'm really interested to see that library," Robin said, turning back towards Neo. "I caught a glimpse of it while passing by the door."

"We'll go there next," Neo replied. "You all can choose which ever room you wish to use on this wing. Our crew sleeps on the other wing. You can each have your own room or you can chose to bunk up together."

"Great. Thanks a lot, Neo," Usopp said.

"We'll have to bring up our stuff later from the Sunny," Franky added.

"Shall we continue with our tour?" Brook asked.

"To the library?" Shanks asked.

"To the library!" Neo cried happily.

Shanks laughed while carrying her towards the exit of the room.

"She seems to be in good spirits," Sanji said to Law while everyone else left the room. His smile faded when he noticed Law didn't look happy that Neo was happy. "Law, is something wrong?"

"No," Law replied, flatly.

"Liar," Sanji shot back. "Do I have to get tough on you like I did when I had to force you to admit that Neo was pregnant?"

Law sighed. He remembered that event clearly. It was the only time he could recall someone telling him what to do and him not biting their head off or taking their head off with his powers. He said, "I'm just concerned about my guests that are arriving. This is the first time that most of them are meeting Neo."

"I see. First time introductions are always the hardest," Sanji said. "But you really have nothing to worry about. They're going to love Neo. She's a wonderful young woman. Plus, she's carrying your child. How could anyone get upset with her? She's so cute. And very sweet. She'll charm them easily."

Law sent Sanji a glare, but it came out very lighthearted. The Straw Hat cook and Neo were best friends, since they bonded with their cooking skills. At times, she seemed to have the closest relationship with this blonde man than the other Straw Hats. He had, at some point, gotten use to the man flirting and calling his wife cute. He had secretly admitted to himself that it was odd when Sanji was around and not flirting with Neo. But that still didn't stop him from getting a bit jealous and glaring at whoever flirts with her. The Straw Hats are just immune from getting hacked to pieces when they do flirt with her.

"Seriously, don't worry so much," Sanji said.

"That I could do, _if_ your idiot captain wasn't here," Law said.

"Well, you got me there," Sanji replied with a laugh. "But try not to let it get to you. We'll do our best to reign in our boneheaded captain. Now, let's catch up to the others before they realize we're missing."

"Right." Law nodded. He allowed Sanji to exit the room first, before flicking off the light, and left himself.

"This place is amazing!" The two men heard Nami exclaim as they entered into the library. All of the Straw Hats, but Luffy, were standing around with their mouths hanging open in stunned silence.

"Dang! When Trafalgar said he was going to build you a library," Usopp said, his eyes bugging out of his head at the many balconies in the room. Each balcony holding two cushioned chairs, a table, and a reading lamp on all four of the walls. "He wasn't kidding!"

"We thought the exact same thing," Penguin said. He shoved his book back on the shelf and walked over to the Straw Hats. "And we helped build the thing. The captain spared no expense in building this place for Neo."

"I'll say," Brook said. He tilted his absent eyes all the way up to the ceiling where he ended up falling over backwards. "Ouch. I think I cracked my spine."

"Where did you get all of these books from?" Zoro asked. He plucked a book off the shelf and flipped through it. He smiled with he noticed it was a book on ancient swords. "You have books on swords?"

"I have books on just about everything," Neo replied. "Quite a few of these books are from Luminous. The Elementals brought them to us when they learned we were building a home here. They come to visit quite a lot and bring us stuff when they're in the area or heading off to travel with Godfather. Mostly they're presented as gifts for letting them stay here to rest before continuing on their journey."

"So that's why you also have bookshelves in the living room and bedrooms?" Franky asked.

"That's right," Law answered. "I made sure to have plenty of room for Neo's books."

"This is boring," Luffy whined. He put his hands behind his head and turned away from the books. "Let's go outside and play with the fairies."

"Shut up!" Sanji screamed. He dropped his foot down on his captain's head. "You leave them fairies alone!"

"Hey! What was that for?!" Luffy demanded.

"For being an idiot," Sanji replied, putting his foot back down on the floor. "Behave yourself for once, Luffy. Law and Neo are expecting some very important guests. They don't need you ruining everything."

"Special guests, huh?" Luffy said. He crossed his arms in thought then smiled. "No worries. It'll be fine. They'll love us."

"I highly doubt that," Law said with a frown.

"So what's next?" Chopper asked.

"Well, there's the kitchen," Neo said.

"My favorite and most anticipated place to visit for me," Sanji said with a wink at Neo, which earned a giggle from her and a glare from Law. "I can't wait to cook with you here."

"I can't wait either, Sanji. Other than that the only other place inside is our room," Neo added with a glance at Law. She wondered if he was going to forbid the Straw Hats from setting foot into their room, but he didn't say anything. "Where to first?"

"Let's go see your room first," Shanks said. He then shot a smirk over at Law. "I'm sure your pirate lover there doesn't want us lingering in your private dwellings for very long."

Law glared at Shanks, but didn't say anything.

Shanks snickered at Law's lack of denying his words. "See?"

"Behave, Godfather," Neo said with a giggle. She pinched a piece of his hair and tugged on it.

"Right, right," Shanks said. He looked up at the spiral staircase closest to them. "So how do we get to your room? Up that one?"

"We can." Neo nodded. "It leads right to our room. Law made sure I had easy access to my books."

"Such a sweet lover boy," Shanks cooed, making the others pirates laugh.

"Careful there, Red Haired," Shachi warned. "The captain will cut you up."

"I'm not afraid of him," Shanks replied. "A little friendly teasing is good for the soul."

"It might be good for the soul, but it'll be bad for the body," Nami said, causing more laugher to ring out.

"Just get up those stairs!" Law snapped.

More laughed rang out from the pirates as they wondered up the spiral staircase. Luffy started to head for the stairs when he paused, catching a glimpse of a Snow Fairy flying by the room and out the living room door. He turned and headed for the front door, leaving his friends behind.

…

"More bookshelves," Nami said looking around the room. Just about all of the wall space was covered with bookshelves. "I'm not surprised."

Neo smiled. She heard Nami's words but her thoughts were on the room itself. Law had surprised her with this room. And not because of all of the bookshelves. He designed it to look like her room in the castle back on Luminous. The window was complete with a small bed where she read a lot and sometimes fell asleep. It wasn't an exact replica, but was very similar, they even had a round bed instead of a rectangle one. She flashed Law a loving smile. He smiled back, instantly knowing what she was thinking without their use of their bond.

"Wow. This bathtub is huge," Brook exclaimed from inside their large bathroom.

Shanks walked Neo over to the bathroom. He looked around. Carefully taking in the detail of the large bathtub in the corner to their left. It had a showerhead hanging over it. He said, "If I'm not mistaken, that's the same as your room back on Luminous. In fact, this entire room is that way. Am I right?"

"Yes." Neo nodded. "Law did it like this as a surprise."

"Well, I must say," Shanks said, turning to Law. "I'm impressed. You've done well, Little Pirate Surgeon. I approve."

"Your approval is not needed nor wanted," Law said with a deep growl.

Shanks chuckled in response when Neo let out a huff of slight annoyance. She said, "You two."

"Um, I don't want to alarm anyone, but," Usopp said, gaining their attention. "Where's Luffy?"

Everyone exchanged glances. The more outspoken and excitable pirates then shrieked, "What?! Where did he go?! He was just here a second ago!"

"Uh, he's outside," Neo said. "And he's with the Snow Fairies."

"That idiot!" Law hissed while bolting for the door with everyone else close behind him.

…

Luffy ran out of the front door and immediately grabbed onto the Snow Fairy that was flying in front of him. The Snow Fairy cried, "Hey! Let me go!"

"Huh? You're a boy!" Luffy said. He inspected the creature in his hold. His hair was cut short, but was the same color as Starlit's. Other than being a boy, the only other difference was the clothes this one was wearing. He was dressed in a fuzzy light red vest and blue pants.

"No? I am?" the Snow Fairy said with a roll of his light silvery blue eyes. "Thanks for telling me. I never would have known without your help."

…

Bepo whistled to himself while he walked around the side of the house. He said, "Ah! Such a nice cool day! I love it here! I'm glad the captain and Neo decided to settle on this island! It's perfect for me!"

He rounded the corner and noticed Luffy standing there. "That's Straw Hat. I thought he was inside with the others. What's he doing?"

Bepo walked closer to Luffy. Caning his neck, he looked to see the rubber man was holding a Snow Fairy. His eyes bugged out of his head while he screamed, "No! Let that fairy go!"

Running as fast as he could, Bepo dashed towards Luffy and the Snow Fairy.

…

"So can you control the snow and ice like that other fairy can?" Luffy asked.

"Of course I can! Are you stupid or something?!" the fairy snapped. "Let me go!"

"Then do it! Control the snow!" Luffy laughed. "I wanna see it!"

"Let him go, Straw Hat!" Bepo screamed. He grabbed onto Luffy's arm and tried to pull his fingers off the fairy. "Let go! Let go!"

"You heard the bear! Let go of me!" the snow fairy demanded. When Luffy didn't release him, he chomped down on the rubber man's hand.

"Ouch!" Luffy cried. He threw up his hands, causing the Snow Fairy to go flying and Bepo to lose his balance.

"You're going to pay for that!" the Snow Fairy snapped while flying through the air. He righted himself up then held out his hands towards Luffy. With his hands glowing, he shot out several snowballs and ice shards at the young captain. "Take this!"

"No!" Bepo shrieked, picking himself up off the ground. "Stop it!"

"AH!" Luffy screamed, remembering being frozen by Starlit before. He jumped up, barely missing the attack. He shot his own hand out to grab the Snow Fairy but missed.

The Snow Fairy flipped backwards to avoid Luffy's grab. Upside down, he fired more snow and ice at Luffy. "Will you hold still?! You're like a monkey!"

"I said 'Stop it'!" Bepo cried again. He simultaneously grabbed for Luffy and dodged getting hit himself by the Snow Fairy.

"Well," Luffy replied. He placed his hand on his hat to keep it from flying off. "My name is Monkey D. Luffy!"

"Monkey D. Luffy?" the Snow Fairy asked.

"Yeah! I'm the man who'll be King of the Pirates!" Luffy announced proudly.

"You're going to be the man the captain grinds into dust if he catches you out here bothering the Snow Fairies!" Bepo shrieked, shaking his fists up and down.

"You've got to be kidding me," the Snow Fairy said. "You want to be King of the Pirates?"

"Of course I do," Luffy replied, landing on his feet. He placed his hands on his hips and smiled. "I'm going to reach that goal. Just you watch."

"Hey! Are you listening to me?!" Bepo asked.

"And I'm going to become a bird," the Snow Fairy deadpanned.

"Really? That's so cool!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Is this guy for real?" the Snow Fairy asked. Pointing his finger at Luffy's face, the fairy shot out a stream of ice. It hit Luffy on the face, causing his hat to fly off his head and his hair to stand up. "You are stupid."

"Ah!" Bepo's eyes popped out of his head. "No!"

"H-h-hey! W-w-what was that f-for?" Luffy asked, breaking the ice off his face.

"For being stupid," the Snow Fairy replied.

"Hey!" Luffy said. "Let's be friends!"

"What?" the Snow Fairy asked.

"You're cool. I want to be friends. And I want you to join my crew," Luffy announced.

"I give up," Bepo said. He let himself crash to the ground on his stomach. "Neither one of you is listening to me."

"You're insane. I'm not leaving this island," the Snow Fairy replied.

"Aw, really?" Luffy frowned. "Why not?"

"I don't feel like it. This place is my home. This is where I'll be staying," the Snow Fairy said.

"Well, all right then," Luffy said. "What's your name? I told you mine, but you haven't told me yours."

"It's Lane," Lane replied.

"Lane, huh? That's cool," Luffy said before flinging out his arm again. He grabbed onto Lane and pulled him to his face.

"Hey! Let go of me!" Lane demanded.

"Well, it was nice knowing you, Straw Hat," Bepo grumbled. "The captain's going to kill you now."

"Why? We're friends now," Luffy said.

"We are not!" Lane snapped. He then released a sharp whistle.

"Hm? What was that for?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

"Your death! That's what!" Lane hissed.

"My death? Yeah right!" Luffy smiled. His smiled faded when he saw several tiny things flying towards him from the woods. He screamed when those tiny things started to glow and shoot ice beams at him. Dropping Lane, he started jumping around in a desperate attempt to avoid getting frozen solid.

"Room! Shambles!" Law called out. He warped the Ice Fairies attacks away from Luffy and into the ocean then sliced up Luffy into multiple pieces.

"Oh, Captain," Bepo said, pushing up on his arms. "You're finally here. I tried to stop him. But he wouldn't listen."

"Please! Stop!" Neo called out. "I'm sorry Luffy bothered you! I promise it won't happen again!"

"Neo?" a Snow Fairy asked. "What's going on here?"

"These are my friends that I told you about. They're staying here for a while," Neo said. "Luffy is just excited. Please, forgive his behavior. He'll settle down soon."

"You idiot!" the Straw Hats, but for Robin, screamed. They punched and kicked their captain's severed body parts multiple times.

"Why must you be so childish?!" Sanji demanded.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?!" Usopp asked.

"Did you hear what Neo and Law said earlier?!" Chopper snapped. "If you annoy the Snow Fairies they'll freeze you solid!"

"Do you want to die?!" Nami asked.

"They sure are lively," Kailen said with a laugh.

"A little too lively," Shachi said. He shoved his hands into his pockets to get them away from the cold air. "The captain is going to kill Straw Hat if he keeps this up."

"Then it's time to say goodbye to our friend," Penguin said.

"I say good riddance," Bepo grumbled as he picked himself up off the ground and walked over to his crewmates.

"You poor baby," Neo cooed to the bear. She reached out and stroked his fur. His cheeks tinted pink as he leaned into her touch.

"Straw Hat, I told you to leave the Snow Fairies alone," Law said with sigh. "Why do I even bother?"

"He's just excited. Leave the boy be," Shanks said with a hearty laugh.

"Godfather!" Neo reprimanded. "Please!"

"All right, all right," Shanks said. He pecked Neo's cheek, causing her to giggle and snuggle into his warmth. He then turned his attention to Luffy. "That'll be enough, Luffy. It's time for you to settle down and come inside."

"Aw! Fine!" Luffy conceded. He looked at Law. "You can put me back."

"No," Law replied.

"What?" Luffy asked.

"Consider this your punishment for bothering the Snow Fairies again. I'll put you back in order when I feel like it," Law said. He turned and walked over to Neo. He looked up at her. "Let's go back inside and start decorating. But _you_ are going to sit while the others do the decorating. And absolutely no arguing, _little girl_."

"All right," Neo agreed, "I won't, but only because you're the one who's so stressed out. And you are going to sit with me. Deal?"

"Deal." Law smiled.

"Let's go inside then," Robin said. "I'm interest to see what decorations you have."

"We have a lot," Neo replied. "We're going to decorate a tree too."

"Really? That's so cool!" Chopper exclaimed as he and the majority of their group went inside as Usopp, Brook, and Franky gathered up their captain's body parts.

"I'm hungry," Luffy whined.

"Oh, shut up. You're lucky we don't just leave you out here," Usopp said. He then glanced at some of the Snow Fairies that remained near the house. "Sorry. Our captain's kind of an idiot. But I'm sure you all noticed that by now. If you want, you can come inside. We promise that Luffy will behave. Right, Luffy?"

"I just wanted to play with them," Luffy whined. "And for them to join my crew."

"No everyone wants to join our crew!" Usopp snapped as he tucked Luffy's arms and legs under his own arms.

"It would be super if you did join us," Franky said while lifting Luffy's torso on to his shoulder and grabbing Luffy's head by the neck.

"No, thank you," Lane replied before flying off.

"Maybe we'll join you later," Starlit said. "I'm going to see if I can smooth things over with the Snow Fairies. Don't let them bother you. We're just not use to humans since all they ever want to do is capture us."

"Well, you don't have to worry about us," Usopp said.

"Yeah. We have no intention of capturing you," Franky added. "Neo's our friend. And since you all are friends with her, then that makes us friends as well."

"That's very nice of you," Starlit said with a smile. "I guess we'll see how this will turn out. See you later."

"Bye," Usopp and Franky said before heading inside with their disassembled captain in their hold.

…

"Something smells really good," Nami said when they reentered the house and was met by a wave of chocolate and popcorn. She took off her coat.

"I bet that's Basil," Kailen said. He took his and Nami's coat, hung them up in the closet then offered his arm to her. "Shall we go into the kitchen and see what he's up to?"

"I'd love too," Nami replied with a flirtation giggle. She placed her hand in the crook of Kailen's arm.

"Give me a break," Zoro mumbled while removing his own coat.

"Shut up!" Nami hissed over her shoulder. She then smiled sweetly at Kailen. "Let's go."

"Hm." Neo hummed. "I'm not sure how I feel about Nami and Kailen being like that."

"She won't take him from you," Robin said, comfortingly.

"Yeah, I know that. I trust Nami and Kailen," Neo replied. Her eyebrows turned up in consideration. "I'm just not sure how I feel about them possibly being in a relationship. It could cause problems in the future."

"Don't worry about it," Robin said. "I'm sure everything will work out just fine."

"You're right." Neo smiled. "Let's proceed to the kitchen now."

"Neo," Basil called when the group entered in to the kitchen. The black haired man was setting mugs out on trays to be moved into the living room while other mugs were sitting around on the counter tops for the Heart Pirates when the crewmembers finally decided to join them. "I made some hot chocolate and hot tea for everyone. The popcorn's almost ready too."

"Thanks Basil," Neo replied, glancing at the stove in the middle of the room. Multiple pots were sitting on the burners, boiling tea in one, hot chocolate in another, and popcorn in the remaining four. "Oh, everyone, this is Basil, remember? He's our second cook on the crew. Basil, you remember the Straw Hats and my godfather, right?"

"Yeah. Nice to see you all again," Basil replied with a friendly smile while the Straw Hats and Shanks greeted him. "It's been a while."

"Apparently it has. I forgot that you have two cooks on your crew," Franky said.

"Yeah. Law thought it would be a good idea to add another cook for when we got married," Neo replied. "We didn't want to drop all the cooking on the crew when we were…uh…"

"Right! Say no more!" Franky said with a wave of his hand. "I understand. And it also makes sense since you're having a little pirate. You're going to be extremely busy when that little one arrives. You'll need all the help you can get."

"Yeah." Neo smiled. Her cheeks tinted pink while she gently rubbed her rounded stomach affectionately.

"Wow!" Sanji exclaimed. His eyes darted everywhere around the large kitchen. There were two long rectangular tables on the far left of the kitchen that served as a dinning room area. The kitchen held a very large fridge over in the far right corner of the kitchen. In the middle of the room was an island that was actually a stove with multiple burners. There was an abundance of counter space on the back wall where the counter lined almost then entire kitchen along with the large sink. The excited cook bounced around the room while inspecting every single detail of the kitchen, spices, cabinets, and cookbooks that he could get his hands on. "Neo! If you weren't already married, I'd marry you! This kitchen is a dream come true!"

"I think he'd rather marry the kitchen than Neo," Kailen said while watching the excited blonde cook.

"You picked up on that rather well," Nami said. "He would probably marry this kitchen if he could."

"I can't wait to cook in here!" Sanji sang. "I can't wait to cook with my darling Neo!"

"Crazy cook," Zoro mumbled.

"Let's go into the living room now," Neo said. She glanced at Sanji. The blonde cook was rubbing his cheek affectionately on the fridge with hearts streaming out of his eyes. "I think Sanji has had all he can handle. He might explode if he stays in here any longer."

"Right. I got this," Zoro said. He walked over to Sanji, grabbed his collar, and pulled him out of the kitchen.

"Hey! What are you doing?! Let me go, you stupid swordsman!" Sanji hissed while he struggled to get free of Zoro's grip.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say," Zoro replied, carefree.

"Well, that was childish," Luffy said.

"You're one to talk!" Shachi, Penguin, Bepo, Usopp, Chopper, Nami, Franky, and Brook shrieked.

"Why are you yelling at me?!" Luffy asked.

"Let's go," Franky said. He left the kitchen while he tossed Luffy's head up and down in the air.

"Hey! Stop that!" Luffy cried.

"Sure, sure," Franky replied, but he continued to toss Luffy's head up and down. Kailen, Shachi, and Penguin grabbed a tray of mugs each while Basil and Bepo carried the large pots filled with their drinks into the living room. The cook set his pot down then disappeared back into the kitchen to attend to the popcorn. The crews scattered around the room, most sitting down, while a few remained standing.

"Here you go, Princess," Shanks said while he lowered Neo to the couch. He then kneeled down and smiled at her. "Do you need anything?"

"No, Godfather," Neo replied. "I'm just fine. Well, hot chocolate does sound pretty good."

"As you wish, milady," Shanks said with a light chuckle. He stood back up and stepped over to the prepared drinks to get her what she wished as Law sat down beside her. Once he had the mug filled up with the rich, steamy chocolate, he handed it to her before grabbing some tea for himself and took a seat on Neo's empty right side.

"Mind if we go ahead and look through your decorations?" Robin asked.

"Go ahead. I don't…" Neo looked over at the boxes. Luffy, despite his severed body, already had the majority of the decorations out of the boxes and scattered around the room, and on himself. "…mind at all."

"These are so great! And they're shiny too!" Luffy said with a huge grin.

"You look like a Christmas tree!" Chopper laughed.

"You just couldn't wait for the go ahead, could you?" Usopp asked.

"Impatient," Shachi said with a shake of his head.

"Are you sure about him?" Penguin asked Neo and Law while pointing at the Straw Hat captain.

Neo laughed, her bells ringing out into the room made everyone relax and smile.

"Leave it to Neo to calm everyone down with a simple laugh," Kailen said while sitting down beside Nami in one of the large chairs.

"She is gifted in settling matters with a laugh or a look," Nami said.

"Go ahead and start decorating everyone," Neo then said. "Bepo? Would you mind removing the tree cover?"  
"Tree cover?" Nami asked.

"This," Bepo said while moving over to the wall near where the staircase was built into. He reached down and flipped back the small carpet to reveal a small handle on part of the floor.

"Huh? You have a hole in your floor?" Usopp asked when Bepo pulled up on the handle, revealing a patch of dirt.

"Yeah. I put that there on purpose. I decided I'd rather grow the tree myself instead of chopping it down. It seemed like such a harsh thing to do to the poor tree," Neo explained. She summoned an earth crystal. Hovering over the dirt, she beamed its glow down onto it. Within seconds a large, lush cedar tree sprung up before the pirates. "I couldn't allow it. Besides, the Snow Fairies rely on these trees for shelter and to hide in when someone comes looking for them."

"No worries, Neo," Sanji said while filtering through a box of decorations. He flashed a smile at her. "We completely understand."

"Are you sure you don't want to wait for your guests to decorate?" Robin asked.

"No, it's fine. I know they'll be tired when they get here," Law replied, putting his arm around Neo's waist. "Go ahead and decorate."

"Popcorn's ready!" Basil cried as he reentered the living room with six bowls of popcorn in his hands, balanced along his arms, and on his head. He placed them down on the tables before heading back into the kitchen.

"Great! I'm hungry!" Luffy said. "Someone move me over to the food!"

"It's not for eating, Straw Hat," Law said. "It's for stringing popcorn."

"I can't eat it?" Luffy frowned.

"No," Law replied, flatly.

"Aw! No fair!" Luffy whined.

"Don't worry, Luffy," Neo said. "Basil is making some up for us to eat as well. He should have them out here soon."

"Great! Let's get decorating then!" Luffy said. "Can someone put me back together now?"

"Law," Neo asked. She snuggled into his side and played with his goatee. "I think he's learned his lesson. Let him get put back together."

"Fine," Law agreed.

"I'll do it," Chopper said while grabbed Luffy's arm and started to reassemble his captain.

"The popcorn should be cool enough now," Law said to Neo. "Are you ready to start?"

"Yup." Neo nodded.

Law nodded back. He leaned forward and pulled open the small draw inside the table. He pulled out some needles and thread then handed them to her. "Here you go."

"Thank you, Law," Neo cooed. Law leaned back. Tucking his arm firmly back around her waist, he took her mug from her and took a drink of it. She leaned forward and grabbed one of the bowls of popcorn. Placing the bowl in her lap, she threaded her needle then started stringing the popcorn through it.

"Don't I just look super?" Franky asked. Everyone looked up at him. The cyborg's hair was now in the shape of a Christmas tree with the star, planned for the real one, sitting on top of his hair.

"What about us?" Shachi asked.

"Do we look like Christmas trees too?" Penguin added. The two Heart Pirates were decorated in garland, colorful balls were hanging from their boiler suits, while tinsel was strung in their hair underneath their hats.

"This is going to take forever," Law said with a sigh. He glance over at the window, a soft, yet worried, expression covered his face.

 _'Law?'_ Neo called gently. He lowered his eyes from the window to her beautiful electric orbs. _'It'll be fine, my love. They'll be here. And we're going to get along just fine. They'll get alone just fine with the Straw Hats too.'_

 _'I thought I was suppose to be the one to soothe you.'_ Law smirked.

 _'We're in an equal relationship. You comfort me when I need it. And I comfort you when you need it.'_

 _'What did I do to deserve you in my life?'_

 _'I often wonder the exact same about you.'_ Neo smiled. Law returned the smile before leaning down and capturing her lips in a soft, tender kiss. Snickers from the other pirates forced them to part quicker than they wanted.

"Now isn't the time for kissy, kissy," Zoro said.

"Now is the time to decorate!" Sanji added.

"So let's do this up right," Robin said. She stood up from her spot on the couch and crossed her arms over her chest. Without a word, she spread out multiple hands. They grabbed several strings of lights from the boxes. "Where would you like these?"

"I'm not really sure," Neo replied while threading more popcorn through her needle. "I've never decorated like this before. So I have no clue what I'm doing. I've only seen and read about this in books. I was kind of hope you all could help me figure out what to do."

"Of course we'll help," Nami said while she and Kailen strung their own popcorn on their threads.

"So we're free to do what we want?" Franky asked.

"Yo ho ho! I'm not so sure that's a good idea," Brook said.

"You're free to do what you wish," Law said. He then gave the Straw Hats, mostly Luffy, a pointed look. "Just as long as you do not destroy our home."

"No worries," Chopper said. His horns were stringing with lights when he popped up out of a box. "We got this. You and your special guests are going to love the house when we finish decorating it."

Law sighed, completely unsure about the reindeer's words. Neo couldn't help but giggle at his expression. He smirked at her before stealing some of her popcorn and popping it into his mouth. He then settled back into the couch to watch what the Straw Hats and his own subordinates would do with his and Neo's home.

"Let's do this!" Luffy cried. He grabbed a string of blue and silver garland and ran around the tree while laughing out loud.

"The lights go on first, Luffy!" Nami cried. "The lights go on first!"

"Okay!" Luffy replied.

"I got them," Sanji said. He pulled out a box of multicolored bulbs. Opening them up, he discarded the box then, with Usopp's help, they strung the first strand around the base of the tree while Robin put the one's she was holding around the ceiling.

"Uh, how are we going to get to the top?" Usopp asked once they had strung the lights as high as they could. "This tree practically goes to the ceiling. I guess Robin could do it for us."

"I'll help," Neo replied. She summoned her wind crystals, earning a disapproving look from Law in the process. She winked at him. "What? I'm calm. I'm not over doing it."

"No, your not over doing it because you're not doing this," Law said. "Bepo, Shachi, go get the ladders."

Bepo and Shachi glanced back and forth between Neo and Law, clearly debating which one they should actually listen too.

When she didn't lower her friends, Shanks said, in his father tone, "Neo."

"Fine," Neo said with a pout while lowering the two Straw Hats back to the floor. She banished her crystals and went back to poking popcorn.

"Good girl," Law said before kissing her temple. "Go on and get the ladders."

"Aye aye, Captain," Bepo replied. He and Shachi lifted up from the box he was digging through then disappeared outside. A few moments later, they reentered the house with the ladders that were requested. They set up the ladders and the pirates resumed their decorating. Robin used her Devil Fruit to string the majority of the high stuff on the walls and ceiling, Usopp used his sniper skills to shoot Christmas balls onto the tree, Chopper held stockings on his horns while Sanji hung them up on the fireplace, Zoro fell asleep, while Nami and Kailen continued to string popcorn with Neo, and Franky sat down on the floor and filtered through the decorations with Penguin.

"How about a song?" Brook asked.

"I'm for it," Shachi said.

"Me too," Penguin added.

"That would be great," Neo said. "Thanks Brook."

"It my pleasure," Brook replied. He pulled out his violin and bow. Pulling the bow across the string, he filled the room with music while the rest of the Heart Pirates started to make their way back into the house. Those of the Heart Pirates, who played instruments, pulled them out and joined the skeleton. The rest of the Heart Pirates helped with decorating and some sang, loudly and off key while a few sat down and enjoyed their hot drinks and popcorn. Healer Zinnia eventually wondered in from her office and sat down with a hot cup of tea and observed the pirates with a light smile on her lips.

Law watched, somewhat contently, as the two pirate groups decorated his and Neo's home. Several times, his eyes wondered over to the window. He eagerly peered out of it. He saw a lot of Snow Fairies passing by, a few occasionally stopping to glance in at those inside or make a funny face then disappeared, it started snowing then. Soft snow fell to the ground to accompany the already ankle high powder. Each time he looked, he saw all nature had to offer on this island. But he never saw his guests or any ship that could possibly be harboring his guests. His steel orbs dropped down to Neo when her head came to rest upon his shoulder. His eyes lightened up when he realized she had fallen asleep. Carefully glancing around at their guests, he noted they all were busy either decorating, watching things get decorated, singing, or playing music. He took the chance to place a secret kiss into Neo's blue hair before nuzzling into her soft locks. He then pressed his cheek to her hair and whispered softly to her. "Sleep well, my love. Know that I'll do anything to keep you and our child safe from harm. And know that I love you so very much."

Law then returned his eyes to the window and resumed his watch for his special guests arrival.

…

 **sarge1130: Ah, I've missed your reviews. Yeah, it happens after Dressrosa. And I think Law's 'special guests' are going to surprise people. I hope it does. I want it to be a surprise.**

 **Apple Bloom: Yeah, I really wanted to do a Christmas special, even though it's now after Christmas. But all well. This'll be a short story. I wanna reach 30 published stories on here. Preferably with Neo and Law. We'll see. I might do a lot of short stories. Thinking about some crossovers too, if I get any ideas. I have a little Harry Potter crossover idea but it won't have much to do with the wizard world.**


	3. Cooking, Yetis, & Avalanches

Cooking, Yetis, & Avalanches

Neo shifted before snuggling closer to Law's warm side. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at him. He greeted her with a warm smile that she returned with one of her own. Sleepily, she said, "I fell asleep. I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize," Robin said, causing Neo to turn her eyes to her. The dark haired woman closed her book and smiled. "We understand you need to sleep when you feel like it."

"Yeah." Neo nodded. She looked around the room to find the majority of their friends were missing. The only other ones in the room were Shanks and Healer Zinnia. And those two were taking naps of their own. "Where did everyone go?"

"Shachi and Penguin disappeared back into the library. Kailen offered to give Nami a painting lesson." Robin chuckled when Neo gave her a quizzical look. "Sanji is in the kitchen with Basil getting a more closer look at the utensils you'll be using when you start cooking."

Law grumbled at that one. Neo whacked him on the chest and smirked at him. He chuckled. Snatching her hand in his, he brought it up to his lips and placed a kiss on her skin before resting both their hands in his lap. She snuggled back into him and waited for Robin to continue filling her in on where their missing friends were.

"I'm not sure where Topaz disappeared too. Franky, Usopp, and Brook headed out back to help your engineer fix up the sleigh," Robin continued.

"Their still having trouble with that thing?" Neo asked with a blink of her eyes.

Robin nodded. "Knowing Franky he'll completely redesign the thing into something befitting his style so be prepared for that. Chopper and Zoro are also outside. Zoro wanted to do some training in the snow while he had the opportunity. And I think Chopper is playing with the Snow Fairies. They mentioned something about reindeer coming closer to the house."

"Yeah, they do that," Neo replied with a nod. "I can sense them out there. Chopper seems to be having fun with them. I'm glad they're getting along. I was a little worried about him considering how he was treated in the past by reindeer. Where's Luffy?"

"Well, first he followed Shachi and Penguin into the library, but only for second before he ran outside out of boredom. Most likely he's bothering Franky and the others while they're working," Robin replied.

"As long as he stays away from the Snow Fairies," Law grumbled.

"Ah, Neo, my darling!" Sanji cooed as he danced into the living room. He spun on his toes before coming to a stop in front of her with his hand extended out to her. "We are ready to start cooking. All we're missing is our lovely head chief."

"I'm ready!" Neo cheered. She pecked Law's cheek then reached out for Sanji's hand. The blonde cook assisted her off the couch then headed for the kitchen, but only got a couple steps before Law cleared his throat.

"Neo," Law said in his warning captain tone.

"Oh, Law," Neo huffed. She glanced back at him. "You worry far too much. I won't be doing much of anything. Cooking isn't stressful at all. And I'll be sitting down on a stool. How about you stop worrying so much? Go read a book."

Law frowned at Neo and crossed his arms.

"Law, that was an _order_ ," Neo said, causing Sanji to snicker. "You're only making yourself worry more by sitting around and staring out the window. At least a book will take your mind off their arrival. They'll be here. You know it just takes time."

"Yeah. I know," Law conceded. He pushed himself to his feet and shoved his hands into his pockets before heading for the library. "Fine. I'll go read a book."

"You're such a good boy," Neo cooed happily. "I'll have to reward you later."

Sanji snickered again when Law's cheeks flushed red before he disappeared from their view. "He's so whooped."

"Oh, behave yourself, Sanji," Neo said while she squeezed his hand. She then turned and kicked Shanks in his shin with her toes. "And that includes you. I know you're awake."

Shanks opened his left eye and looked at her. His dark eye sparkling mischievously, while he said, "I can't help it. I love see my Godson-in- _Law_ squirm like that. Such a big, bad pirate caves to such a cute young woman. It's funny."

Neo pulled her hand from Sanji's. She walked over to her godfather and leaned closer to him. She pecked his cheek before saying, "Says the big bad Emperor of the Sea who also caves to the same cute young woman."

"She's got you there!" Sanji said with a hearty laugh at the now red cheeked pirate.

"Oh, shut up!" Shanks snapped. "You cave to her too!"

"I have no problem admitting that!" Sanji laughed then offered his arm to Neo. "Shall we, my dear?"

Neo laughed then joined Sanji. She hooked her arm into his and pulled him into the kitchen where the other Heart Pirate cook was waiting with all the utensils they needed lying out on the counters for them to use. "Basil!"

"Yo, Lil Lady!" Basil called. "Are you ready for some cookin'?"

"I'm so ready for this!" Neo replied. "I'm hungry too!"

"Well, no worries there," Basil replied while he pulled a cushioned stool with a cushioned back, that the engineer of the crew had made for her, away from the wall and set it near the counter. He patted its cushioned seat. "Have a seat and get back to restin'."

"Thank you, Basil," Neo replied. She rolled her eyes and giggled when both Sanji and Basil held out their hands just in case she lost her balance and fell. "You two. You both are just too much."

"You are worthy it," Sanji said.

"So what would you like to start with?" Basil then asked. "I need to work on some more eggnog. Jean Bart keeps putting in more orders for it. It's hard to keep up. We have tons of cookies to make, pies, of course the turkeys, mashed potatoes…though the veggies should wait until we're about to be done cooking."

"And we certainly don't want to cook the turkeys until the very last," Sanji replied while gathering up some baking supplies for Neo to use. "Luffy will eat them if we do. We're going to have to keep a close eye on him. Once we start cooking he'll definitely wonder in here and try to steal some."

"No worries, Sanji," Neo replied. "We'll have plenty to give to him to satisfy…well we'll have some to give him. If I can't get him to behave, I'll leave running him off to you two when the time comes."

"And that time will come," Sanji said with a sigh and a nod.

"Have you made up your mind in what you want to make first?" Basil asked.

"I wanna make Christmas Pecan Cookies first!" Neo cheered.

"Then Christmas Pecan Cookies it is!" Basil and Sanji replied back. They then dashed around the kitchen to gather up the ingredients for her.

"Here we go! Let the cooking fun officially begin!" Neo giggled. Summoning a wind crystal she pulled one of her cookbooks off the shelf. Using the wind to flip it open before placing it on her cookbook bookstand. She hummed to herself as she pressure out and dumped the ingredients into her large green mixing bowl.

"I'll start on the pies!" Sanji announced while spinning a pie pan on his finger. He grabbed himself a large mixing bowl and piled all the necessary utensils inside of it before finding himself a place to work on the counter.

"I might as well start on some more eggnog then I'll get the candies started," Basil said. The black haired man moved more calmly around the kitchen than the others. He gathered up his own ingredients and found himself a comfortable spot farther away from Neo than Sanji did. He decided that Sanji should spend more time with Neo. He already got to spend a lot of time with her since they were on the same crew.

"So, Law's pretty anxious about his visitors, isn't he?" Sanji asked a few minutes later, his hand turning his pecan pie mix rapidly as he looked over at Neo.

"I think he's a bit more that _pretty anxious_ ," Neo replied. She rolled another ball in her hand then placed it down on her cookie sheet with the rest of them. "He's so worried about them meeting me that he hasn't gotten much sleep. Last night _I_ had to rub _his_ back to get him to go to sleep. I was about to order him to take a sedative if he didn't fall asleep when he did."

"It's understandable that he's this worried. I think any guy in his situation would be this worried," Sanji replied. He paused his mixing and looked at Neo. "What about you? You must be pretty nervous yourself."

"Maybe," Neo replied in a low voice.

"Maybe?" Sanji asked. He turned towards her and tapped his mixing spoon on the edge of his mixing bowl in a mock fashion of tapping his fingertips on the counter.

Basil laughed then said, "Don't bother trying to fool us, Lil Lady. We know you better than that. You can barely handle strangers as it is. And these particular _strangers_ are actually important to the captain. Just admit you're as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs."

"All right, all right. I'm completely and totally petrified," Neo replied. She scrunched up her nose at them. "I want this to be and go as perfect as Law does. But I know that won't happen. So I'm just trying to do what I can to make this easier for Law and not stress myself out."

"I take it that also has Law concerned over your pregnancy and not just because of over doing it," Sanji concluded while going back to his pies.

"Yeah." Neo nodded.

"It's also why the crew is keeping themselves scattered around the manor and the grounds," Basil added. "They don't want to add anymore pressure to Neo and the captain since they are known to getting into fights every now and again, especially when they play poker and other games."

"That's very considerate of them," Sanji said with a smile. "But then I'm not surprised. We all love Neo so much. We don't want to put her under anymore pressure than she already is."

Neo scoffed. "You know, you all are suppose to be _pirates_ not _mother hens_."

"You should be use to it by now, Lil Lady," Basil said walking towards Neo. As he passed, on his way to the cabinet that held the bourbon, he pecked her temple. "We love you. We'll _mother hen_ all over you whenever we feel like it."

"Yes, _mother_ ," Neo teased. She lifted the man up on his feet with his winds for a few seconds before setting him back down, earning a chuckle from the man. Rolling her last cookie into a ball, she placed it down on the sheet then lifted her two cookie sheets into the air with her winds. She then summoned a couple of fire crystals, flared them up, and cooked the cookies to a golden perfection before banishing her fire crystals. Lowering the temperature of her winds, she cooled off the cookies then set them back down to roll them in powdered sugar.

"Your crystals really do come in handy," Sanji commented. He held up the two pecan pies he just finished mixing together and poured into their pies crusts. "But I thought Law didn't want you to use your crystals for frivolous things."

"Indeed on the crystals." Neo nodded. She wrapped the pies up in her winds then summoned her fire crystals below the pie pans. Flaring them up, she cooked them to perfection then lowered them to the cooling racks. "But feeding my babies is not frivolous at all and Law knows that. Besides, I like cooking either way. Using my crystals just speeds things up. And since Law's guests will be here soon, and with how Luffy and certain crewmates of ours…" She glanced over at two said crewmates walking into the kitchen. "…are in a bad habit of trying to steal food, waiting until now to cook was the better choice. You two get out of this kitchen!"

"Aw, Neo," the two Heart Pirates whined. "We want a cookie. We know you're making extra."

"They're not even rolled in powdered sugar yet!" Neo pointed out.

"We don't care," they replied, giving her puppy dog eyes. "They taste good either way because they were made from our favorite cook."

"Good grief," Neo said with a huff. She flew a cookie each over to them. "There now get out."

"We love you!" the two cheered through their mouthful of cookies.

"I love you too," Neo replied, her eyes softening with love and affection for her mischievous crew. She turned back to her cookies. Picking up the powder sugar, she filled a smaller bowl half full then started rolling them in the white powder.

…

"Aw, come on!" Luffy whined. He was lying across a worktable near the broken sleighs and annoyed pirates. His arms dangled over the side, almost to the point of touching the floor of the shed. "I'm bored! Let me help!"

"No way!" Usopp snapped. "Your help is what's causing us to take so long in finishing these things!"

"I can't believe he completely disassembled all three of these sleighs with just one touch," the Heart Pirate grumbled. He looked around at the scattered parts of the light green sleighs now lying on the shed floor. "After all that work…I feel so violated."

"We get that feeling a lot. But that's Luffy for you," Brook said. The skeleton was sitting on a crate with his legs crossed while his teapot and tray was sitting on the barrel beside him. He took a long sip of his steamy tea as his missing eyes roamed over the broken sleighs.

"Why don't you go bug someone else for a while?" Franky asked. He grabbed one side of a sleigh and picked it up. With a wrench in his hand, be brushed the back of his arm over his forehead then started working the sleigh again. "We really need to get this done."

"The captain wants to offer his special guests a sleigh ride," the Heart Pirate said. "He won't be able to do that if we don't get these things fixed."

"Fine," Luffy grumbled. He jumped off the sleigh and headed for the door of the shed. "I'll go see what Zoro is doing."

"Good," Usopp said, turning back to the sleigh. "Bug him instead."

Luffy stuck his tongue out at Usopp before running out the door. He dashed across the yard then skidded to a stop when he saw a couple Snow Fairies flying around one of the trees in the yard. He ran over to them, screaming, "Hey! Let's play!"

"Huh?! Ah! It's him! The one who keeps grabbing Snow Fairies!" one of the Snow Fairies screamed.

"Quick! Into the tree!" another one said. They dove into the bare branches of the tree and held out their hands to attack if they needed to do it.

"Aw, don't be like that," Luffy said. He walked over to the tree and looked up at them. "I wasn't going to grab you. I just wanted to play with you."

"No way! You can go play with the yeti!" one of the Snow Fairies shouted.

"Yeti? There's a yeti here?" Luffy asked, his head tilting to his left.

"Yeah." The Snow Fairy nodded. "He lives in the caves at the bottom of the mountains."

"Really?! That's so cool!" Luffy exclaimed with yellow sparkles in his eyes. His eyes then trailed from the Snow Fairies and over to the mountains. To excited to hear what the Snow Fairies started to yelled at him, he bolted away from the tree and towards the mountains as quick as he could.

During his mad dash, he came upon Chopper and a herd of reindeer. Chopper greeted him upon seeing his captain. He said, "Hey, Luffy. What are you doing way out here?"

"I'm heading to the mountains! You wanna come?" Luffy asked.

"No. I'm going to head back to the house and check on Neo," Chopper replied.

"All right then," Luffy replied. "Oh! Wait! Before you go, could you ask one of the deer to give me a ride to the mountains? I really don't want to run all the way there."

"Sure thing, Luffy." Chopper nodded before turning to the reindeer. "Excuse me, but would you mind give my friend here a ride to the mountains? Really? Thanks a lot."

"He said yes?" Luffy asked.

"He did," Chopper replied with another nodded.

"Great!" Luffy screamed before jumping upon the reindeer. "Let's go!"

"Wait a second, Luffy! Why are you going to the mountains?!" Chopper called out, but it was too late. Luffy and the reindeer were already gone. "All well. I guess it doesn't matter. What harm could he do by going to some mountains? Guess I'll head back now."

Chopper hummed to himself as he walked back to the house. When he got there, three Snow Fairies were laughing hard. He headed over to them and asked, "What's so funny?"

"That boneheaded rubber man," a Snow Fairy replied. "He's heading up to the mountains to where the yeti lives."

"Oh, is that it? I'm glad Luffy didn't bother you. All right then, I'll see you later," Chopper said. He then walked off. He got about half way to the house before what the Snow Fairy said really hit him. "What?! Luffy went where?! This is terrible! What do I do?! What do I do?! What do I do?!"

"Hey, hey! What's all the yelling for?" Usopp asked as he walked out of the shed.

"Luffy headed for the mountains!" Chopper cried, tears streaming down his cheeks. "What are we going to do?!"

"What's the big deal? What could he possibly-Ah!" Usopp started then screamed.

"The yeti!" Chopper and Usopp shouted at the same time before making a mad dash to the house.

…

"Faster! Faster!" Luffy cried as he spurred on the reindeer. The reindeer picked up his speed. The forest around them blurred and before Luffy knew it, they were at the base of the mountains. He jumped off the reindeer and looked around. He spotted the caves the Snow Fairies told him about and dashed over to it. Looking inside, he screamed, "Hello! Yeti! Come out and play! Hey! Where are you?!"

Luffy stopped yelling and looked into the dark cave. He blinked curiously for several seconds before he saw movement inside. "Hey! There you are!"

A heavy thump caused the ground to shake around Luffy. The shaking was followed by a roar then the yeti stepped out of the cave. Luffy's eyes lit up again at the fifteen foot tall, white furred yeti before him. "So cool! You want to join my crew? I run a pirate ship!"

The yeti turned his dark brown eyes to Luffy then roared again before whipping his hand at the pirate.

"Whoa!" Luffy cried while dodging the hit. He jumped away from the yeti then charged forward. "You wanna fight? Then let's fight!"

The yeti roared again. He swiped multiple times at Luffy and ended up hitting a few trees in the process. The tree trunks shattered. Creaking sounds filled the air as the trees base weakened and fell the ground with loud crashes.

"You're so strong! You have to join my crew!" Luffy shouted happily.

…

"It smell so good in here," Shanks said as he walked into the kitchen. He walked directly over to Neo while sniffing the sweet smells of all the cookies, pies, and candies that were now laid out on the counters and table. Slipping one arm around her shoulders, he snatched himself the gingerbread cookie she had just covered with icing and was about to place on the cookie rack.

"It's amazing we ever have any desserts make it to the end of dinner," Neo said with a playful glare at her godfather. "I feel like I'm already a mother with over twenty children to take care of."

"You do have over twenty children to take care of," Shanks replied, stealing another cookie. He popped the whole thing into his mouth, chewed, then swallowed before continuing to talk. He then lowered his hand to her stomach and affectionately brushed his thumb over her. "Consider it practice for taking care of my grandchild."

"Yeah," Basil agreed. "Only without the diaper chances, breastfeeding, early morning feedings, and diaper changes, the painful deli-"

"Thank you, Bas!" Neo said, cutting him off. "I'm really looking forward to all of that."

"Sorry," Basil replied with a small sheepish grin. "I just got carried away. I wasn't trying t-"

"Waaaaaaa!" Usopp and Chopper's voices then resonated throughout the entire house.

"What in the world are they screaming about?" Sanji asked.

"He's gone!" Chopper's voice then said. "I didn't know! I should have stopped him! I'm so sorry!"

"I guess Chopper's back from playing with the reindeer," Neo said. "I didn't even sense him coming. Guess I was too distracted by our cooking."

"Who's gone?" Basil asked just before Usopp and Chopper ran into the kitchen, shortly followed by an annoyed Law and an always calm Robin.

"What are you two screaming about?!" Law demanded. "What's going on?!"

Chopper ran over to Neo. He jumped up onto her legs and placed his hooves on her shoulder. Tears pouring down his fuzzy cheeks, he said, "I'm so sorry, Neo! I'm sorry! I know _*sniff*_ I know you're suppose to be resting and not be under any stress! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Chopper, calm down," Neo said as she soothingly stroked her hand over his cheek. She then looked over at Usopp. "Tell us what happened."

"It…it's Luffy," Usopp said while panting and taking a careful glance at Law. "He's…he's gone after the yeti!"

"He what?!" Shanks, Sanji, and Basil screamed.

Law sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"That idiot!" Sanji screamed. "Is he trying to get himself killed?!"

"Oh dear," Neo said. She looked down at Chopper when he looked up at her.

"I'm sorry. He asked me to ask one of the reindeer to take him to the mountains. I didn't even think about it and did it. Then I got back to the house. Some Snow Fairies were outside talking. They said he was going to find the yeti," Chopper explained, tears still streaming down his cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Neo! I was stupid!"

"It's okay, Chopper." Neo hugged him. "It's not your fault."

"How long ago was this?" Basil asked.

"About ten or so minutes ago," Chopper replied.

"Dang! Some of those reindeer can run really fast," Basil said. "If he got on one of them, then he's probably already there."

"Are they really _that_ fast? Those mountains aren't exactly close by," Usopp said.

"They are fast." Basil nodded. "And they know this land better than others."

"We should go," Neo said, slipping off her stool after Chopper jumped off her lap.

"You are staying here," Law said.

"Law, you know I can't. With how much it's been snowing, Luffy can unintentionally set off an avalanche if he gets that yeti annoyed enough to roar loadly. You've heard how loud the yeti can roar," Neo said. She gave Law a pointed look and crossed her arms. "And if that happens then a lot of animals will be in danger. You'll need my help to advert the avalanche and calm the yeti. I'm going."

"She's got a point, Captain," Basil said carefully.

"It doesn't take that much magic or energy to fly," Neo added. "And you can warp a lot of the snow away. Franky can use his Fireball, Robin can use her large hands to redirect the-"

"All right, all right," Law said. "You've made your point. Let's go. But we're only taking the minimum amount of people."

"Why's that?" Sanji asked.

"The yeti doesn't like large groups. Taking too many people will only upset him even more," Law replied.

"Right. I'll stay here then," Sanji said with a nod.

"Well, I'm going," Shanks said. "I might not be much help with an avalanche and a yeti, but I still want to be there. I, at the very least, can control Luffy."

"Fine," Law said, heading out of the kitchen. He rushed over to the closet and got his and Neo's coats out. By the time he turned around, the others had came out of the kitchen and were walking over to their get own coats as well. He handed Neo her coat just as Healer Zinnia walked into the room.

"And where do you think you're going?" Healer Zinnia asked with crossed arms and a light glare at her princess.

"We have a bit of an emergency," Neo replied. She pulled on her coat then pulled her hair out of it. "We won't be gone long. And before you start, don't. I won't be over extending myself in the least. We might get lucky and Luffy won't even cause…" She paused when everyone gave her a skeptical look. "Fine. Come with us, Zinnia."

"Very well." Healer Zinnia nodded. She grabbed her coat and was ready within a few seconds. "Let's get this over with and get you back inside."

"Everyone ready?" Neo asked, looking at the small group that was going with them. They all nodded. She then led them towards the back door.

"Hey, where are you all going?" Penguin asked, poking his head out the library.

"We're having a bit of an issue with Luffy," Neo replied.

"Do you need us to come with you?" Shachi asked, poking his head out the library door.

"No, we're going to the mountains. You know the yeti doesn't like large groups," Law said. "We won't be gone long."

"Aye, Captain," Shachi and Penguin said while watching the group leave the house.

The group bolted through the door. A cool rush of wind, and impending doom, washed over their warm bodies. The snow crunched under their boots as they rushed across the yard and over to the large snow covered shed. Law rushed forward and grabbed the large door, he pushed it opened then allowed Neo to go in first before following her.

"Franky," Neo called when they got inside the shed. She scanned her eyes over the room. Several shelves and tables lined the walls. Tools were neatly placed in order on the shelves and on the tables. The Heart Pirate always had a thing for clean organization. He liked to easily find his tools when he needed them. She paused when her eyes landed on the three sleighs in the middle of the room. Her jaw dropped open. The former four to six seated sleighs were now extended to hold twelve people each. The green paint had been covered with brighter colors and styled in a very Franky like way with a grinning face on the front of them all.

"What's up?" Franky asked, pulling himself out from underneath the sleigh.

"Those are so cool!" Neo screamed with sparkles in her eyes. She dashed over to the sleighs and inspected them. "Robin warned me this would happen!"

"I take it you approve?" Franky laughed.

"I do! You're the best!" Neo exclaimed. She threw her arms around the cyborg's waist.

"Hey, hey! I help!" the Heart Pirate engineer protested.

"I'm sorry! You're the best too!" Neo said. She moved from Franky and gave her a crewmate a big hug too. He chuckled and hugged her back.

"Princess, you're suppose to be staying calm," Healer Zinnia said with exasperation. She then shook her finger at the two pirates. "And you two, stop exciting her!"

"Sorry," Franky and the engineer said.

"What was it that you wanted?" Franky asked.

"We need you to come with us," Robin replied. "Luffy's gotten himself into trouble again."

"Geez. Again?" Franky asked as he walked over to them. "He was just here a few minutes ago. He sure moves fast when he wants too."

"Yup. We should have seen this coming and just put him on a leash," Shanks said with a laugh.

"What we should have done is put him in sea prism stone chains," Law grumbled.

"Do we have any orders, Captain?" the Heart Pirate's engineer asked.

"Just stay here," Law replied. "We'll be back soon."

"Aye, Captain."

Franky grabbed his coat off the table he had thrown it on and followed the group out of the shed. Once outside, Neo summoned her wind crystals and wrapped her winds around them and lifted them into the sky. She caught Healer Zinnia, from the corner of her eye, watching her carefully. She then looked at Law's grumpy expression and wondered which one of them would actually kill Luffy for this if they got the chance. Or maybe they'd actually team up for this one. She bit her bottom lip and giggled when an image of the two working together to give Luffy the beating of his life over this.

"Glad you're finding this so amusing," Law said with a deep frown when her thoughts passed through his mind.

"I'm sorry," Neo replied. She cut off her giggling, silencing her bells as she did, but her smile remained on her lips. "I know this is stressful for you."

"This is stressful for _you_ ," Law corrected.

"It's not that bad. I'll easily be able to settle the yeti down," Neo said. "And we'll put sea prism stone chains on Luffy for a while. Maybe that will settle _him_ down."

"I wouldn't count on it," Shanks said with a small laugh.

"How much longer?" Franky asked, his eyes scanning the ground below them. Small dots appeared to be looking up at them as they passed over them. He assumed it was the reindeer.

"Just a few more seconds," Neo replied just before a loud roar erupted through the air.

"What the heck was that?!" Franky shrieked.

"It's the yeti," Neo replied. She connected herself to as many animals near the base of the mountain as she could. She told them to leave the mountain for a while and hoped they all listened to her. She figured they would. They usually did. And surely they could sense the danger that was about to come their way. "Looks like Luffy found him."

"Just great," Law said. His eyes locked onto the mountains when the roar dislodged some snow. The snow shifted and the air filled with a loud rumble. "Here comes the avalanche."

"So what's the plan?!" Franky asked. "Tell me there's a plan!"

"I'll fly you, Robin, and Law over the avalanche," Neo replied. "You three melt and divert as much of the snow as you can while I calm the yeti down."

"What about Luffy?" Robin asked.

"I'll handle him," Shanks said.

"And I'll stay with the princess," Healer Zinnia said. "If her blood pressure rises at all, we're out of here."

"It won't. I'll remain as calm as possible," Neo replied before splitting the two groups up.

…

"Here goes! Franky! Fireball!" Franky called out when his group was hovering over the snow.

"Gigantesco Mano!" Robin called out. She spread her large hands over as much of the mountain as she could, guiding some snow around while pressing some snow together against the mountain.

"Room!" Law held up his hand. He formed his Room as large as he possible could and warped as much snow as possible to a safe area below the mountains. "Shambles!"

…

"There he is," Shanks said with they spotted Luffy and the yeti.

"What's he doing?" Healer Zinnia asked. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she watched Luffy pounce around.

"Fighting," Shanks and Neo replied, flatly.

"Are you saying he came out here to fight the yeti?" Healer Zinnia asked.

"No. Most likely he came out here to see and recruit the yeti into his crew," Neo replied. "The yeti wouldn't have understood what he was saying. Then things probably just escalated from there and ended in a fight."

The yeti roared again. This time it was followed by Luffy's laughter. The three hovering in the air sighed. Shanks then said, "Come on. Let's put an end to this quickly and get you back to the house."

"Right." Neo nodded. She lowered them down to the ground. As she lowered them, she lifted both Luffy and the yeti off their feet.

"What?!" Luffy cried out. He waved his arms and legs wildly before noticing Neo, Shanks, and Healer Zinnia. "Huh? Oh! Hey, guys! Did you come out here to play with the yeti too?"

"No, Luffy," Shanks said. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head, with a smile. "You're never going to grow up, are you? You were trying to recruit the yeti, weren't you?"

"Of course! Wouldn't it be so cool to have a yeti on my crew?!" Luffy asked with a huge grin.

"He's insane!" Healer Zinnia exclaimed.

"There now," Neo cooed softly as she flew towards the yeti. She placed her hand on his white fur and stroked him. The yeti snorted and squirmed in her hold before slowly calming down. "I'm sorry you got disturbed. I promise it won't happen again. But you need to calm down now. You could have gotten yourself hurt. I know. Luffy upset you. We'll take him away from here. Are you calming down now? That's good. Thank you for being so understanding."

Neo set the yeti back down on the ground. She stroked his head before he walked off and disappeared back into his dark cave. She turned just in time to see Shanks slamming his fist on top of Luffy's head. Luffy cried, "Ouch! Shanks! What the heck was that for?!"

"For being stupid!" Shanks snapped back. "I know you were excited about the yeti, but you could have seriously hurt yourself and others by setting off that avalanche!"

"What avalanche?!" Luffy asked.

Healer Zinnia groaned. She summoned her earth crystals and wrapped a vine around Luffy's body. She then turned him towards the mountains. "That avalanche!"

"What?! How did that happen?!" Luffy asked.

"You are a real idiot!" Healer Zinnia snapped. She released Luffy and sighed. Moving her crystals towards the mountains, she started to assist the pirates in stopping the avalanche. "I don't understand how you and the surgeon can put up with this."

"We love Luffy. That's how," Neo replied with a shrug. "Besides, we've spent enough time with him. We're use to this. This is just the first time you've met him. You'll get use to it."

"I don't want to get use to it," Healer Zinnia grumbled.

"So, are you going to help them?" Shanks asked, turning his eyes to the three other pirates still in the air.

"I suppose I can help a little," Neo said, earning a warning glare from Healer Zinnia. "Just a little. It's almost over anyway."

"Fine. But _just a little_ ," Healer Zinnia stressed.

Neo nodded. She turned to face the mountain and summoned the rest of her crystals. Using them all, she diverted as much snow as she possible could without causing her blood pressure to rise. She scooped a lot of the snow up with her wind crystals and piled it in places were it wouldn't cause any damage and dumped some out in the ocean, while using her earth crystals to lift parts of the ground up to redirect the fall of the snow, and used her water and fire crystals to melt some of the snow to redirect it into different places such as small streams that flowed around the mountain and island.

A few minutes later the avalanche had been put to a complete stop. Neo flew Law, Franky, and Robin back over to them before lifting the rest of the pirates and healer into the air again. Everyone, but for Robin and Neo, constantly glared at Luffy the whole way back to the house.

"What?" Luffy asked.

"You are an idiot!" Franky replied before slamming his fist on his captain's head. "Don't ever do something like that again! Neo's suppose to be taking it easy! Not following you out to mountains to tame yetis and stop avalanches!"

"I'm sorry!" Luffy cried, rubbing his hands on his head just as Neo lowered them down to the yard.

"We're putting sea prism stone chains on you!" Franky screamed.

"What?!" Luffy protested.

"That seems to be the only way to keep you out of trouble!" Franky yelled back.

"I'll personally put them on him," Healer Zinnia said as she stalked towards the house to find the chains.

"I'm tempted to help," Shanks added, following after the green haired woman.

"Hey!" Luffy cried as he followed after them with Robin and Franky behind him.

Law sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose again.

"I'm sorry, Law," Neo said. "I know this keeps stressing you out. Perhaps we should have had the Straw Hats here at another time."

"No," Law said. He put his arm around Neo's waist and pulled her into his chest and kissed her hair. "You missed them. It's fine that they're here. We'll just put the chains on Straw Hat and finally get some peace."

"Well, at least you won't have much longer to wait for them," Neo said.

"What do you mean?" Law asked, loosening his hold a bit on her.

Neo lifted her eyes to him and smiled. She said, "There's a bit of a disturbance in the ocean. A ship is coming. Your guests will be here in about two hours."

…

 **Author's Notes: Yup. Next chapter Law's** _ **special guests**_ **will be finally revealed. I'll try to get it up as soon as I can. Until then, later!**

 **Sarge1130: Thanks. Law is so lovable to Neo. Love him. You'll know who his guests are next time.**

 **Apple Bloom: Thanks. I'm excited too for Summoner of Death. It's taking forever to get those chapters written. They're some how coming out at 10,000 words each T.T So much proofreading.**

 **Silver Pride: You'll know soon. Next chapter.**


	4. Special Guests

Special Guests

Neo tightened her arms around Law's waist when she felt his heart take a sharp jolt and giggled.

"What's so funny?" Law asked upon giving her a playful squeeze.

"I've never felt you so nervous before," Neo replied. She turned her shining eyes up to him. He was trying to hide his nervousness from her, but it was obvious he wasn't having much luck in doing that. "I think you're even more nervous now than you were when we got married. It's a bit of an odd feeling. I'm the one who's always nervous about new things. You've always been the rock in our relationship."

Law's lips curled into a smile. "Well, that was a very special occasion and a very big step for both of us. It's the same right now. It's natural for people to be nervous in situations like this. Besides, you're just as nervous, if not more, than I am."

"I know." Neo nodded. "I'm trying my hardest not to get sick from being so nervous. I don't want to worry you any more than I already have."

"I know you are," Law said. He rubbed his hands over her back. "I'm very proud of how you're handling yourself here."

"And I'm very proud of how you're handling yourself here," Neo replied back. She giggled again when Law lifted a confused eyebrow at her. "You haven't tried to kill Luffy at all."

"I'm still tempted to do just that," Law grumbled. He glanced back over to the mountains and how much danger the Straw Hat captain put them all in.

"Tempted, trying, and doing are three different things, my love," Neo said, pulling back from him a bit. "Come on. Let's go see how everyone is doing. I bet Healer Zinnia really did put the sea prism stone chains on Luffy herself."

"I hope she wrapped them around his neck," Law said just as a small group of Snow Fairies flew by. They laughed at his words before heading off for some winter fun of their own.

"Don't give her any ideas," Neo said as she pulled him towards the house. For a few seconds the only sound between them was the crunching snow under their boots. "Are you sure about feeding everyone as soon as your guests arrive? Wouldn't they like to rest for a while?"

"Yes, I'm sure. They'll be tired and hungry after such a long trip," Law replied. "They can eat and rest at the same time. Besides, I don't think the Straw Hats and our own crew will be able to wait much longer to eat themselves."

"I suppose you are correct," Neo said thoughtfully. "I'm surprised they haven't already tried to sneak more food than they have. They're being so wonder. We're going to have to do something for them after this. I know it's not easy for them to behave for so long, especially with the Straw Hats here."

"They are." Law nodded in agreement. He tightened his arm around her shoulders. "We'll do something for them later. Right now, let's get you inside. It's getting colder out here. And I'm sure Basil and Blackleg are waiting for you to finish up cooking."

"I almost forgot about that," Neo said with a blink of her eyes.

"You almost forgot about cooking?" Law joked.

"Hey! I was distracted!" Neo protested with a pouty lip.

Law chuckled at her pout. He walked her to the side door of the house and paused. Leaning down, he captured her pouty lips in a sweet, tender kiss. He smiled when she melted into his touch and kissed her harder. Tangling their tongues together, they got into a heat, yet playful, battle of dominance. Just as Law started to unbutton her coat and slip his hand underneath her shirt, the door swung open, revealing an irritated Elemental healer. Law gave her an irritated glare while Neo's cheeks flushed. With a harsh glare at the intruder, he demanded, "What?"

Healer Zinnia opened her mouth, but quickly closed it. She thought about her words before sighing. "Never mind. There's no point in telling you two to cool it down. You'll always be hot for each other like that. Just take it easier next time. The princess's heart rate was going up. I don't want to have to put her on bed rest while your guests are here. And I'm sure you don't want that either."

"Sorry," Neo said. She tucked her hair behind her ear, looking sheepish. "We'll behave from now on."

Healer Zinnia gave her a skeptical look. "Right. Like you two were behaving just before the Straw Hat's arrived?"

"Uh." Neo's cheeks flushed even more before Healer Zinnia sighed again and headed back into the house.

"We're just never going to get any privacy with her crystals on you," Law grumbled.

"I'm sorry," Neo replied. "This wouldn't have happened if I didn't over do it."

"Don't worry about it," Law said while guiding her inside the house. The heat from the fire inside expelled the cold from around their bodies. "It won't be for much longer. Then we'll be able to get back to…"

"Our sex life will never be the same once baby arrives," Neo said when Law paused. She knew he was going to say 'normal', but they both knew that wasn't true.

"It might not be the same, but it won't chance all that much," Law said. They walked down the hall before turning and stepping into the living room. The majority of the Straw Hats and Shanks were all sitting in the living room with Bepo. Nami and Kailen were missing. "We'll just have to adjust things around and see what works. And we're going to have plenty of babysitters. So we'll have plenty of alone time when we want it."

"You're right. The crew will love babysitting for us," Neo said with a smile. "I bet Penguin will be the top babysitter. He'll haunt the others to make sure they're taking care of baby as well as they can."

"He's going to be the protective uncle." Law nodded in agreement.

"Ah, Neo, my sweet!" Sanji cooed from the kitchen doorway. "We're ready to get back to cooking when you are!"

Neo looked up at Law. He nodded and took her coat from her when she pealed it off her shoulders. "You go ahead."

"All right. But I want you staying near me," Neo replied, stepping out of her boots.

"I know." Law nodded. "You're getting more nervous with each second their arrival comes closer. I'll stay inside until they do. If you need me…"

"I'll call or come to you," Neo finished for him.

"Good girl," Law said. He leaned over and pecked her lips before picking up her shoes. As he walked over to the closet to put them up, Neo headed for the kitchen. Both paused upon seeing Luffy sprawled out on the floor with the sea prism stone chains wrapped around his entire body. The Straw Hat captain looked really pathetic with his tongue hanging out of his mouth as he lay there. "Serves you right."

"I sobry," Luffy replied. He rolled his eyes up towards Law. "Vill ou ake zes of now?"

"Absolutely not!" Usopp growled. "You've caused enough trouble for today. Those chains are staying on!"

"Yeah! Those chains are staying on!" Chopper parroted.

"We warned you multiple times, Luffy," Shanks said from his armchair. "This is your punishment since you can't behave."

Neo placed her hand on the red haired man's shoulder. He placed his hand over hers as she leaned down and pecked his cheek before telling Luffy, "It won't be for long, Luffy. And, I'm sorry, but this has to be done."

"No need to give him any sympathy," Zoro said taking a peak at Neo from his attempted nap. He was sprawled out on the couch with his hands behind his head and his legs crossed. His swords were leaning up against the wall nearby, easily in reach if they were needed. "We did warn him. He didn't listen. He got what he deserved."

"I suppose so," Neo said, but still felt a bit guilty.

"Hey, Neo," Basil said while poking his head out of the kitchen. "Are we making garlic mash potatoes? Or just plain ones and let people flavor them how they like?"

"Plain ones," Neo replied walking towards him. "We'll set out all of the spices so people can put on whatever they want."

"I should have known." Basil nodded. "That makes way more sense then favoring it with stuff people might not like. We're ready to finish up cooking when you are."

"I'm ready," Neo said. She paused at the kitchen door just ask Basil disappeared back inside. She looked over at Law. He was just walking away from the closet. She smiled at him when their eyes met. He smiled back before claiming a spot on one of the couches. She watched his eyes wonder to the window. She sighed, knowing he'd watch it like a hawk until they finally arrived. With nothing else to say to him, she wondered into the kitchen to help the other two cooks finish the preparations for their meal.

…

Neo's eyebrows perched up when she felt the disturbance of ocean creatures. She knew the feeling and the reason for it. Law's guests had finally arrived. The sounds and smells of the kitchen faded away from her senses as her heart skipped a couple beats. There was no more time to prepare. This was it. She looked down at her dress and wondered if she should change. Was the dress too short? Should she put on a longer one? Maybe she should put her jeans and a shirt on? Would they like her in her typical tomboy style that Law raised her in? Or would they like her showing her more girly side? She should have put more thought into it before hand.

"Neo, something wrong?" Sanji's distant voice asked.

Neo looked up to the blonde cook. He had paused at his job of mashing potatoes to look at her. She noticed that Basil had paused at his job of setting things out on the table. Both were giving her looks of concern. She put on her best smile and said, "I'm fine. Law's guests have finally arrived."

"Neo?" Law called from the door of the kitchen.

She nodded at him. "Go ahead. We're ready. I think. Did we forget anything?"

Law walked over to Neo as her eyes darted around the kitchen. He could feel her mind running rapidly over her list of foods they made, what they could have made or should have made. When he finally reached her, he took her face in his hands, and pressed his lips to hers. He let their lips linger together before pulling away from her. He rested his forehead on hers and said, "Relax, love. Everything is just fine. I have to go get them now. And you're dressed just fine. You look beautiful as always. Are you stable enough for me to go get them?"

Neo grasped ahold of his wrists. Slowly, she nodded. "Yeah. I'm stable. I know everything is fine. I have nothing to worry about. You go on and escort them up here. I'm stable."

Law paused to take her in. Her mind and heart were still racing a bit, but she was stable. He nodded, kissed her forehead before heading out to meet his guests.

Neo slid off her stool. Her eyes ran over the kitchen again while she started fiddling nervously with Law's ring.

Basil and Sanji exchanged smiles before giving her a few words of encouragement. Leaning close to her, Sanji pecked her cheek. "Don't stress yourself out. They're going to love you."

"Just like we do," Basil said, giving her a peck on her other cheek. "Just be yourself, breathe, and know we are right here if you need us."

"They're both right," Robin said when she walked into the room. She smiled at Neo and placed her hands on the young Elemental's shoulders. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Thanks, guys. I really appreciate everything you've all done for me," Neo said. She gave each of her friends a warm smile. "I'm really glad you all are here."

"We're glad to be here for you. And everything smells so good in here," Robin then said. She looked around the room at all of the goodies the three cooks prepared for them. "They're going to be so impressed with you."

"You think so?" Neo looked up at the black haired woman.

"I know so. You are a beautiful, smart, strong, young woman with some very impressive cooking skills," Robin said. She flipped and teased Neo's hair then adjusted her dress a bit, smoothing it out. "Just relax and be yourself. They'll see how smart and wonderful you really are."

"And Luffy?" Neo asked, looking towards the living room.

"He's learned his lesson," Robin replied. "At least for the moment. Red Haired and the rest of the crew are going to keep a close eye on him. He'll behave for a while since we're about to eat."

"That's true," Neo said. She looked over at the table. Basil and Sanji had everything sat out now so the table was decorated with fifteen turkeys, three large dishes of sea pig meat, and a large variety of vegetables and fruits that Neo grew fresh for this occasion. The counters and fridge were covered with pies, cookies, candies, and cakes. The kitchen was warm with all the hustle and bustle the three cooks were doing, but she felt a chill of anxiety waiting for their special guests to come inside. "He does seem to behave better when he's eating."

…

Law grabbed his coat and pulled it on before quickly leaving the house without a word to anyone. A couple of his subordinates walked by him, quietly greeting their captain before walking on. He nodded at them before turning his eyes down to the docks. A new ship was now docked beside the Sunny and the Polar Tang. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out before forcing himself to take a step.

After that first step was taken, the rest came easier. The closer he got to the docks, the more worried he became. What would they think of Neo? Would they have an issue, any kind of issues, with her not being human? Would they have any issues with her carrying their child? Would they hate her? Would they love her? What would they think of her past? Would they think she wasn't good enough for him?

Law stopped walked. He pushed those thoughts out of his mind. He didn't want Neo to feel his worry. He loved her. Their thoughts, whether they liked her or not, really didn't matter. As long as she was still with him and happy, that's all that really mattered to him. He continued on down towards the docks, still worrying no matter how he tried not to. This was more important to him than he wanted to admit, even to himself. He wanted them to like her, to love her. He figured they would. Who wouldn't? Neo was such a sweet, caring, lovable young woman.

Pushing those thoughts away, he instead turned to what he was going to tell them about her. Should he just tell them completely everything? Or should he just leave some stuff out? What exactly was important? Not touching Neo was high on the list. The last thing they needed was for Neo to become hysterical by a touch from an unfamiliar person.

His body jolted to a stop when the gangplank landed on the dock with a loud thump. He looked around. When did he get here? He thought he had a little more time to think about things. But he didn't. He looked up just as his four guests appeared at the top of the gangplank. This was it. No more waiting. No more second thoughts. It was time for them to meet Neo.

…

"Are you ready to meet them?" Basil asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Neo replied before taking a deep, calming breath. Her heart flittering wildly in her chest as she closely monitored how close Law was to the house. She could also tell that he was talking about her, but wasn't exactly sure what he was saying. He wasn't completely open to her so she wouldn't get more nervous than she already was. She didn't know if he would tell them _everything_ about her or just give them the highlights until they could talk more in depth later. She should have asked, but figured he wouldn't have enough time to tell them everything on the walk up here. They were over halfway up the path now. He would just tell them the top important stuff, like not touching her until she was use to them. "Law's almost back up to the house. That was insanely quick."

"Then let's go," Robin said. She slipped her arm around Neo's shoulders and guided her out of the kitchen. Basil and Sanji exchanged smiles while they followed after the women.

Still taking deep breaths, Neo ran her eyes over the room. Shachi, Penguin, and Bepo just walked in at the same time they did. Everyone was giving her encouraging smiles and a few thumbs up. Usopp was smiling too as he took the sea prism stone chains off his captain. Healer Zinnia pushed up her glasses and hovered over the crystal in her hand that was telling her the speed of Neo's heart. Neo gave the worried woman a smile before taking several more deep breaths, calming her flittering heart a bit.

"Yeah! I'm free!" Luffy cried, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Behave yourself!" Usopp and Chopper shouted while hitting Luffy on the head. "This is important!"

"Princess?" Healer Zinnia asked, ignoring the Straw Hats.

"I'm fine," Neo replied.

"Hey! By the way," Luffy asked, looking at Neo while adjusting his hat. "Who exactly are these guests? And why haven't we met them before?"

Neo opened her mouth to reply, but quickly shut it when the front door opened. Unfamiliar voices, couple with Law's filled the air. Neo's anxiety steadily rose to the voices. From her spot near the kitchen, she couldn't see their guests at all. She wasn't sure if that was good thing or not.

"We have some reservations about this, Law," a man said.

Neo started fiddling nervously with Law's ring again.

"Marriage is hard enough," a woman added. "But married to someone who's not even human? And having a child with that person? Do you understand the complications and troubles that come along with that? How are you two even able to have a child when you're not the same species?"

Neo took a step back from everyone. Robin, Shanks, and Healer Zinnia were the only ones who noticed the start of her retreat. With each words the unfamiliar voices said, she took a step back towards the kitchen.

"Just give her a chance. She's really very sweet, loving, and kind," Law said, sounding a bit different than the confident captain he usually was. He almost sounded like a nervous teenager introducing his girlfriend to his parents for the first time ever. Which wasn't far off from this situation.

"I'm sure she's great!" a female child said. "She sounds like she's going to be so much fun!"

"Hush child," the woman said. "You're too young to understand this."

"I understand just fine," the girl said. "You're only being protective because Law's your-"

"Hey! Tra!" Luffy cried out, cutting the girl off. He ran over to the door. He smiled brightly at the four people standing with Law. "Hurry up and introduce us to your guests!"

"Straw Hat!" Law hissed while putting away everyone's coats.

"And who's this young man?" the man asked.

"I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" Luffy replied with a proud smile. He ran his eyes over Law and Neo's guests. "I'm the man who's going to be King of the Pirates!"

"King of the Pirates?" the man asked. "Like Gol D. Roger?"

"That's right." Luffy nodded.

"Law?" the woman asked.

"It's a long story," Law said with a sigh. "I'll explain everything later. Let's move on into the living room and I'll make introductions."

Neo turned and ran back into the kitchen. Robin's voice calling out her name, but she didn't stop. And she didn't look to see if the older woman followed her. She just ran into the kitchen and tucked herself into the farthest corner of the room. Sliding down the wall, she wrapped her arms around her knees and sucked in shaky breaths. "I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't do this."

"Neo?" Robin called softly.

"I can't. I can't do this," Neo replied, tears slid down her cheeks.

"Neo, it's okay," Sanji said, bending down to her. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "Just relax."

"I can't. I can't do this. I can't," Neo replied, shaking her head. "They…they don't like that I'm not human."

"That's not true," Robin said. "They're just concerned. They haven't met you yet. Once they do, they'll love you."

Neo shook her head. She tightened her hold on her legs as much as her round stomach would allow and clenched her eyes shut. She held that position, even when Law calling her name. "Neo?"

"She's just a bit scared," Sanji said despite Law already knowing that.

Still with her eyes closed, Neo could feel Law nodding in response to Sanji. She then felt the two Straw Hats move away from her and Law get closer. He sat down beside her. Slipping his arm around her waist, he pulled her to his side. He kissed her hair then spoke softly to her. "Just breath, love. It's going to be fine."

"I can't do this, Law," Neo whispered. "They're going to hate me."

"No they're not," a familiar voice said before Law could speak. He reached out and stroked Neo's hair. "They're acting just like anyone else would in their position. They're going to love you. I've told them everything I know about you. Just come see them."

Neo lifted her eyes from her knees, her electric blue orbs locking onto his darker ones. He was just the same as the first time she met him. His smile was soft, warm, caring, and his blonde hair just as wavy and smooth as she remembered it to be. And he was wearing the exact same outfit he was when she first met him, a simply dark blue shirt and jeans. A small smile formed on her lips when he brushed her tears away.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" he asked. "And, if I may say, you look a whole lot better now than you did the first time I saw you. You've grown up into a beautiful young woman. And the pregnant look really suits you a whole lot better than the poison look you had before."

Neo giggled, took a hold of his hand, and leaned into his touch. "I've missed you, Cora."

"And I've missed you too, Princess," Corazon said with a tender smile. He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it. "Are you ready to meet them now?"

Neo squeezed his hand and looked to Law.

"It'll be okay. I promise," Law said. He kissed then pressed his forehead to her temple. "You're my love. I know it's important to you for them to like you, but it doesn't really matter if they do or don't. You are the most important person in my life. If they can't deal with that, then it's their problem. They're not going to take me away from you."

"Okay," Neo replied with a light nod.

"You ready to go meet them now?" Law asked.

"Yeah. I'm ready." Neo nodded. She slid her free hand into Law's then allowed him and Corazon to help her to her feet. She held on tightly to their hands as they escorted her back into the living room. Her hands trembled in their hold, but she didn't try to run. Through mental encouragement from Law, she took in slow deep breaths and they stepped into the living room. Three sets of unfamiliar eyes landed on her. It made her heart jump. She swallowed hard, her hands shaking even more in Law and Corazon's hold. They each gave her hands a squeeze, but she barely felt them.

"Oh!" Neo heard a young child's voice squeal. "Law! She's beautiful! Why didn't you tell us she was so gorgeous?!"

A small smile flittered on Neo's lips from the child's words. She forced herself to finally forced her eyes off the floor and look up at them. She timidly inspected them. Looking to the girl first, she found the girl was wearing a light green dress, her brown hair was pulled back in pigtails, and her dark eyes were smiling and inspecting her with pure innocent curiosity. She moved on to the other two guests. The woman's hair was also brown, pulled back in a ponytail. She was wearing a plan beige colored shirt and jeans. Her dark eyes, Neo noticed, were inspecting her with intensity. It made Neo quickly move on to the man. He had black hair, wild just like Law's. He was wearing glasses, a button up white shirt and jeans. He was looking at her with the curiosity of a doctor, which Law had told her he and his wife were. He looked like he wanted to dissect her, but she didn't feel threated by him at all. It was just genuine curiosity he had in her. There was no ill intent in his eyes at all.

Law cleared his throat, gaining their attention. It was time to officially introduce everyone. "Lami, Mom, Dad, this is Neo, my wife. Neo, this is my family. Cora you already have met."

"H-hello," Neo greeted quietly, squeezing Law and Corazon's hands. She maintained her timid smile and managed some solid eye contact with each of them. "It's nice…to finally meet you all. Welcome to our home. If you need anything, please, don't hesitate to ask."

Lami squealed again and rushed forward. When it looked like she was about to grab Neo's hands from Law and Corazon, Law held out his free hand, causing his sister to run into his palm. She protested to the treatment. "Hey! What was that for?!"

"Lami, I told you on the walk up here that you can't just touch her," Law said, holding his kid sister at arm's link. "She needs time to adjust to you all."

"Oh! Right! I forgot!" Lami said. She then smiled at Neo. "Sorry! I didn't mean to rush you!"

"It's…it's okay," Neo said softly. "I know it's something you have to adjust to as well."

"Uh huh," Mrs. Trafalgar mumbled. She ran her eyes over Neo, carefully inspecting her. "So, Law told us you've been through some very traumatic events and that's why you can't handle being around strangers or having anyone touching you."

"That's correct," Neo replied with a nod. "But I've gotten better at dealing with strangers. I'm talking more to them. I just can't handle being touched because it triggers those memories."

"I see." Mrs. Trafalgar nodded.

"Interesting," Mr. Trafalgar then said. He crossed his arms over his chest. He ran his eyes over the other people in the room. They all, surprisingly, were being quiet as they watched this exchange. "Since the walk up here was a short one, Law couldn't tell us much about your kind. I would really like to exam you."

"Dad!" Law hissed.

"Sorry," Law's dad chuckled. He held up his hands in an apologetic way. "I shouldn't have said it like that. I just meant that I would like to study a bit on your biology. I can do that with books or with someone. Law told me there was an Elemental doctor here too."

"Healer," Healer Zinnia said, pushing her own glassed back upon her nose. She tucked the crystal she was hold into her pocket and looked at Law's dad. "Amongst our people, we are called healers."

"Yes, of course." Mr. Trafalgar nodded. "My apologies again. My curious doctor side is working in overdrive. We're just so use to saying doctor. I'm just curious since this young woman is carrying our grandchild and having a sexual relationship with our son."

"Dad!" Law said through clenched teeth. He felt his cheeks grow warm with embarrassment and Neo giggling on the inside. He shot her a mental, disapproving, frown. He felt her biting her lip to keep from actually giggling on the outside, but didn't do or say anything else.

Everyone else in the room, however, busted up laughing. They loved how Mr. Trafalgar's bluntness and how easily it was for him to embarrass the infamous Surgeon of Death.

"Ah, he's so cute when he blushes!" Shanks jabbed, earning a disapproving frown from Law.

"Godfather!" Neo reprimanded, but she was smiling.

"Super cute!" Franky said.

"It's rare to see him like this!" Usopp said. "I actually like it."

"Tra's blushing!" Luffy laughed while pointing at Law. He wrapped his arms around his waist and fell back on the floor.

"Careful," Chopper added. "We don't want to get sliced up by him!"

"Yeah! Sliced up by the Surgeon of Blushing!" Zoro snickered.

"Will you all shut up?!" Law hissed, only making everyone laugh harder.

"Oh, hush up, son! It's not like anyone here doesn't know that you two are sexually active with each other! She's pregnant for crying out loud!" Mr. Trafalgar said, waving his hand to encompass Neo's rounded stomach.

"He's right, Law," Corazon said. "We all know how you really feel about her. You can't hide it anymore like you use to."

Law growled at the blonde man. He pulled his hat down over his eyes and tried to ignore everyone's laughter while thinking of multiple ways to murder them all.

"No worries," Healer Zinnia said before Law carried through the thoughts of killing everyone in the room, but for Neo, like she knew he was having. "And it would be my pleasure to tell you whatever you want to know about our biology. If you wish, I can even talk to you about the princess's pregnancy. That is, if you don't mind me sharing that information with them, Princess."

"Uh." Neo looked at the healer then looked up at Law. _'Law?'_

 _'If you are fine with them know, then go ahead and give her permission.'_ Law peered into Neo's eyes. _'If not, then you don't have to.'_

Neo nodded. She turned back and addressed Healer Zinnia. "It's fine with me. Whatever they want to know, go ahead and tell them. But, please, do so after dinner. I'm sure everyone's hungry by now."

"Yeah! Food!" Luffy shouted. He leaped up to his feet and ran towards the kitchen.

"Luffy!" Sanji cried. He tried to dive for his captain, but before he could, Law formed his Room. But before Law could warp Luffy, to wherever he was going to, Neo summoned a wind crystal and had the Straw Hat captain suspended in the air.

"Ah! What?! Neo!" Luffy complained. He hung limply in the air while pouting at his blue haired friend.

"Luffy, please," Neo said with a light huff.

Mr. Trafalgar and Lami laughed while Mrs. Trafalgar shook her head. Lami said, "He's funny! But who is he again?"

"I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" Luffy replied. "I'm the captain of the Straw Hats! These are my crewmembers! That's Zoro. He's our swordsman…"

"Hey." Zoro waved without actually caring. He stood up from the couch and shoved his swords back into his belt.

"Sanji's our cook! He and Basil helped Neo make all the yummy smelling food!"

"Nice to meet you all!" Sanji greeted with a smile.

"Chopper is our doctor…"

"Hi!" Chopper smiled. "And I'm a reindeer not a raccoon!"

"He's so cute!" Lami chirped with hearts in her eyes.

"Hey! Don't call me cute, you stupid jerk!" Chopper said as he danced around blushing.

"Usopp is our sniper…"

"Hey!" Usopp waved.

"Robin is our archeologist…"

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. Neo and Law have been wonderful hosts," Robin said. She shot a smile and a wink at Neo.

Neo smiled back, grateful for the words of praise and support from the woman she has come to see as an older sister and mother type figure.

"Brook is our musician…"

"A skeleton?!" Mrs. Trafalgar gasped. Her pale skin turning a few shades lighter.

"Yo ho ho!" Brook laughed. Neo clenched a hold of Law and Corazon's hands again. She was worried the skeleton was going to be his normal self and ask Law's mom if he could see her panties. "It is a pleasure to meet you all. Please, don't allow my appearance to unsettle you. I assure you I mean no harm. I'm a skeleton because of my Devil Fruit. It's a long story."

"Brook is great! You'll love his music! He'll play for us anytime!" Luffy said before continuing on with introducing his crew. "That's Franky! He's our shipwright! He built our ship that you saw outside. The ship's name is the Thousand Sunny, but we call her Sunny for short."

"It's super great to meet you," Franky said while striking his typical pose with his arms in the air.

"You build that ship out there?" Mr. Trafalgar asked.

"I did indeed!" Franky replied. "She's the best ship you'll ever see! I can give you a tour of it later if you want!"

"Yeah!" Lami leaped up with joy. "I wanna see the ship!"

"Later, Lami," Law said, earning a disappointing frown from his sister.

"And our navigator is Nami," Luffy said as he looked around for the missing orange haired woman. "But she's not here. That's odd. Where did she go? Kailen's missing as well."

"I'm sure we'll meet her later," Mr. Trafalgar said. He pushed up his glasses and looked back at Neo and Law. "And where's your crew, son?"

"Basil is one of ours. But the rest are scattered around the grounds," Law replied. Basil waved to their guests, but remained quiet. "We have twenty one members so I'll just let them introduce themselves individually when they get here."

"Can we eat now?" Luffy asked after his stomach released a very loud growl. He shot out his hand and grabbed the doorframe, trying to pull himself towards the kitchen.

"Straw Hat," Law grumbled while pinching the bridge of his nose.

Neo summoned an earth crystal. She wrapped vines around Luffy's body to hold him more securely. She glanced over at her godfather when he stood up. Shanks walked over. He stood by Luffy with his arms crossed. Just at the man's presence, Luffy settled down and released the doorframe.

"It's all right. I'm sure everyone is hungry by now. And the food smells really great." Mr. Trafalgar laughed while his wife carefully scanned her eyes over Neo. He elbowed his wife in the arm upon noticing how she was scrutinizing their son's wife. "Right, dear?"

"Oh, yes," Mrs. Trafalgar said with a nod. "Let's go ahead and eat."

"Yes. Of course," Neo said. She stepped aside, pulling Law and Corazon with her to let their guest head into the dinning room first. "We should call the others."

Law nodded. He released her hand and stepped over to the doorway of the kitchen. He pressed a button on the wall so he could call for his crew through the transponder system. "Time to eat. Everyone come on back to the house and living room."

Neo watched as everyone else started to filter into the dinning room. She swallowed when Law's dad started up a conversation with her godfather.

"And who are you, sir?" Mr. Trafalgar asked the red haired man.

"My name is Shanks. I'm Neo's godfather," Shanks replied.

"So she does have a parentally figure in her life," Mrs. Trafalgar noted.

"Indeed." Shanks nodded. He caught Neo's eye and smiled lovingly at her. "But your son is the one who's responsible for Neo growing up into such a wonderful, well educated young woman. He has been a wonder for her." He raised his voice a bit for the next thing he said, making sure that Law heard him. "But don't tell your son that. He doesn't need a bigger head than he already has."

Neo smiled back at him. Her heart fluttered at his words while Law shot a glare and a frown at the older man.

"Yeah! My brother is awesome!" Lami cheered. She grabbed onto Law's arm and snuggled into him.

"Lami, stop being so grabby," Law told her.

"You're just being shy. You don't want anyone to see the lovable soft you really are," Lami said shooting a sly glance up at him.

Neo laughed. She couldn't help it. "You have no idea how true that is."

"Eek! Your bells! Law told us about them too, but I didn't think he was serious! They're just as beautiful as you are! I love it! And I see! Of course you'd know that about him!" Lami said. She put her hand up to her lips like she was whispering while still holding onto Law with her other hand. "You should have seen the look on his face while he was talking about you to us on the way up here. He's totally love struck over you."

"Yeah! That's the captain for you," Penguin said. He and Shachi appeared out of nowhere and slide up to their captain. Feeling secure with Neo near, they couldn't help but take this rare opportunity to tease their captain.

"He's totally head over heels for Neo," Shachi added. "He'd do anything for her."

Law growled and shot his subordinates a disapproving glare that told them they were going to pay for this later. Shachi and Penguin just walked away from their captain with smiles on their faces. They knew he wouldn't do anything to them. Even if he did have plans to dismember them with his powers, they knew Neo would get them out of it by the smile she worn on her lips and the playful sparkle in her electric blue eyes. The captain grumbled, "Let's just eat."

Just then the rest of the Heart Pirates came wondering into the house. They introduced themselves individually and told Law's family what their position on the crew was. Tero said, "Yeah, I helped train Neo in hand to hand combat. She was really lacking in those skilled because these other guys were too soft on her. But I suppose it made sense since they were with her from the started. They're the ones who raised her and went through all of the stuff with Luminous and the Elementals."

"Luminous, yes. Law mentioned that on the walk up here too," Mr. Trafalgar said.

"She's still not training like that, is she? She's pregnant after all!" Mrs. Trafalgar said. She narrowed her eyebrows at Tero. "A pregnant woman should not be fighting!"

"Always the doctor, Mom," Lami said from her chair at the table. She was sitting between Bepo and Chopper.

"No, ma'am," Tero said. "I won't train her while she's pregnant."

"That's good to hear," Mrs. Trafalgar said. She took a seat near the head of the table.

"You have nothing to worry about even if she was still fighting in hand to hand combat," Healer Zinnia said as she sat down at the table. "We Elementals are a bit different from humans. Pregnant Elementals can get hit without causing damage to the baby."

"Really?" Mr. Trafalgar said, his eyebrows perching up at this information.

"Yes." Healer Zinnia nodded. "Our crystals protect the child. That doesn't mean we're immortal. Damage can still be done if hit enough times or hard enough."

"I see." Mr. Trafalgar nodded.

"Interesting," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "I think I would like to hear more on this later."

"Of course." Healer Zinnia nodded.

 _'I can't tell really if your mom likes or hates me.'_ Neo thought to Law while watching Law's parents engage in conversation with Healer Zinnia.

 _'Just give her more time. Mothers often have a harder time letting their children go, especially their sons.'_ Law replied back.

 _'Why?'_

 _'Some mothers just don't want another woman taking care of their son. Sometimes they feel like they are being replaced.'_

 _'Oh.'_ Neo placed her hand on her rounded stomach. She wondered how she would feel once their child started dating then got married. How would she handle that? Would she like whomever their child was interested in? Or would she have a reaction like Law's mom was having? _'I think I understand. I'll give her a little more time.'_

 _'Good girl.'_ Law squeezed Neo's hand. He then instructed everyone to start eat, despite Luffy already chewing on a large piece of sea pig meat. He gave the Straw Hat captain a disapproving frown just as Nami and Kailen walked in.

"There you two are. Where have you been…hiding…?" Neo said. Her eyes locked onto her brother. She tilted her head upon seeing a trace of lipstick smeared on his lips.

"Sorry we're late," Kailen said, looking more than a bit guilty.

"Yes. We got a bit distracted during Kailen's painting lesson," Nami said, smoothing out her white skirt.

"Sure you got distracted by painting," Penguin said with a snicker.

Law cleared his throat to cut off anymore teasing. He knew Neo was going to need a little time to adjust to the possibility of Nami and Kailen entering a romantic relationship. He glanced at his love. She was carefully watching, with slight confusion, as Nami and Kailen took their seats at the table. He then directed his dad to take the seat at the head of the table. He took the seat on his dad's right side, since his mom was sitting in this seat on his dad's left side. He guided Neo to sit beside him while Corazon sat on her other side. The rest of the crews seated themselves. Some stayed in the dinning room while others got their food and disappeared into the living room.

While the crews, and guests, chatter on happily about how good everything looked and smelled and exchanged questions and small talk with the Trafalgar family, Neo took the time to look around. So far things seem to be going well. But that was because they were in a group. She knew, at some point, she would have one on one talks with Law's family. She didn't know how she was going to handle that. She didn't know what people did in situations like that. As least she had her bond with Law. He could give her tips and encouragement in those situations. For now, she turned her eyes to the food before her. She really didn't want to eat, but her cravings were getting the better of her. So, reaching out, she started to fill her plate.

…

 **Author's Notes: Surprise! It's Law's family! Anyone now know what's going on here? Glad I got this one up before I left town. Now you all know. The next chapter might be the last. I'd like to push it to six, but it all depends on what I have them do next chapter. I'd really like to give Neo sometime with his family, but that's difficult since we don't know what they're really like. If anyone has ideas on how they can interact with each other, I'm hope to them.  
**

 **Sarge1130: Luffy's always a blast to have around.**

 **Apple Bloom: Never heard of that show before.**

 **Silver Pride: Well, now you know. That wait is over.**


	5. Winter Dreams

Winter Dreams

"That was so yummy!" Luffy exclaimed as he stretched out his arms and leaned over the back of his chair while the rest of the pirates also murmured their thoughts on how good their meal was. He straightened back up and looked at Law's parents. "Wasn't that just the best meal you've ever had?! Sanji, Neo, and Basil are the best cooks you'll ever meet!"

"It was! I love it so much!" Lami yelled before grabbing another cookie and tossing it into her mouth. "So good!"

"Lami, please, keep your voice down. We're inside. And don't talk with your mouthful," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "It's very bad manners. You know better than that."

"Sorry," Lami said while still chewing on her cookie.

"Honey, do something," Mrs. Trafalgar sighed.

"Lami, listen to your mother," Mr. Trafalgar said.

"Yes, sir," Lami said after swallowing her cookie.

"But she's right," Corazon said. He turned to Neo and placed his hand on her shoulder with a warm smile. "That was indeed the best meal I have ever had. Thank you all for making it for us. You must have gone through a lot of trouble to make such a fabulous meal."

"I'm glad you all like it so much," Neo said quietly. "But it really wasn't any trouble at all. We really love cooking for our crews."

"She's right," Sanji said. He and Basil smiled at Neo before looking to Law's parents. "And what are your thoughts on the meal?"

"It was very incredible. The meat was very tender, the vegetables were extremely fresh and…these spices you all used," Mr. Trafalgar said. He then paused and sniffed the lingering spices in the air before giving each of the cooks a glance. "I can't even name a lot of them. What are they?"

"Some of them are local spices that we've picked up on our travels. But a lot of them came from Neo, Healer Zinnia, and Topaz's home island of…uh…," Sanji said. He paused upon reaching the Elementals home island. He wasn't sure if they wanted him to mention it or not. He looked to Neo and Law for the answer.

"Neo?" Law asked, leaving the decision up to her as always.

"It's okay," Neo said. She glanced over at Law's parents. "My people are from an island called Luminous."

"Luminous? Sounds fascinating," Mr. Trafalgar said, crossing his arms over the table. He leaned in towards Neo with a friendly smile. "What's it like there?"

"Yes. And how many of you are there?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back in her chair, her expression tight and unreadable.

"Well, there's over about a million Elementals living on Luminous," Neo said. She fidgeted under the stares of Law's parents and tightened her hold on Law's hand. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. She felt a little better when Law did that but was still fidgeting. "But some have left the island so we don't have an accurate count for how many Elementals there are actually. Some Elementals live among humans and we assume they have had kids so…"

"That's understandable. But it sounds like your people are thriving if there are that many," Mr. Trafalgar said.

"Yes. Especially since you can procreate with humans," Mrs. Trafalgar said in a monotone voice.

Neo flinched at the older woman's words. She really wasn't sure how she should take them, but it still stung her. She felt tears trying to gather at the corner of her eyes. But she wasn't going to let them fall. Mrs. Trafalgar didn't know her at all. She was just doing what Law had said before. She was just being a mother. And Neo wasn't going to hold it against her. She was going to try and prove to Law's mom that she could take care of her son. If she couldn't, then she wasn't going to stress herself out over it. She loved Law. And if his mom couldn't handle that then it was her problem.

"Mother," Law said in a warning tone while squeezing Neo's hand.

"What? I was only stating a fact," Mrs. Trafalgar said.

"Mother's just being protective," Lami sang out before smiling at Neo. "I like you. And I would really like to see you using your crystals."

"It's fine," Neo said after composing herself. She looked right in Mrs. Trafalgar's eyes and smiled. "I can understand that you might not like me. This is a big adjustment for us all. And we really don't know each other yet. Believe me. I understand that people are not going to always get along. I might be naïve at times, but I do understand that. I can't even beginning to imagine what it's like for parents to see their son grown up and moving on with a family of his own with a normal human girl. And I'm not human or anything related to normal."

"Neo, that's not true!" Law started. He stopped when Neo looked at him.

"Law, it's okay. We all know that I'm not normal at all. I still get scared easily. I still need time to adjust to new things. And I'll never be able to be touched or cornered by strangers without freaking out. We all know I'll always be like that. There's no point in trying to hide that or disguise it. I really don't mind." Neo smiled at her love then looked back to his parents. "I know you all are good people. I can tell that. It will be fine if you don't come to like me at all. But, the fact is, I love your son. I love him more than you could ever possible know. We're bonded on a very deep level, both through my magic and through normal everyday bonding that people go through. He's done so much for me. So much that you can't even imagine. He saved my life, in more ways than one. He gave me a home, he and the crew educated me, and we have made this child together." She placed her free hand on her stomach. Her heart fluttered at the thought of their child growing inside of her. She turned her tear glistening eyes to Law. "I know that our child's life will be difficult from being born to different species of parents and of parents that are pirates. But we're going to love and protect our child together. Nothing is going to change how Law and I feel about each other. He's a really good man. And I won't hold anything against you, even if you don't like me. As long as I have Law, our crew, Godfather, my people, and the Straw Hats, I'll be fine."

A short span of silence filled the room before Mr. Trafalgar said, "You seem to be very mature for someone who's gone through so much pain. And you seem to be what I imagined a princess to be. How is that possible?"

"Elemental royals are just like that," Healer Zinnia said. "It's in her blood."

"Interesting," Mr. Trafalgar said. He rubbed his chin in thought. "I really would like to see your medical charts. This is all so fascinating."

Neo looked at the man before her eyes flittered over to the woman sitting beside him. She couldn't read Law's mom's expression, but she could definitely see that the woman was thinking. She figured it was about what she said, but she had no way of knowing for sure. Sighing she looked down at her empty plate. She managed to eat enough to keep Law and Healer Zinnia happy and not throw up, at least not yet.

"Hey! We should go outside and play!" Luffy shouted. Neo looked up at the rubber man to see he was talking to Lami. "They have Snow Fairies and a yeti here!

"Really?!" Lami asked. Her eyes lit up and she collapsed her hands together. "I would like to see them!"

"We could go play with them!" Luffy said.

"No! You! Won't!" All of the pirates and Elementals snapped and whacked the rubber man over the head, but for Robin, Law, and Neo. "You've caused enough trouble for one day! Don't make us put the sea prism stone chains back on you!"

"Aw, come on. Just for a while?" Luffy pouted.

"No!" they all shouted.

"That boy is going to kill us one day," Healer Zinnia mumbled. She wiped her hands on her napkin then stood up. Looking to the two new doctors in the room she said, "I'll be in my office. Whenever you feel like going over Neo's medical records, you can come see me. My office is just down the hall to the left. You can't miss it. I'll be giving Neo an examination in a couple hours. If it's all right with the princess, you two can sit in and watch. Though it'll be nothing extraordinary since our biology is pretty much the same as a humans."

"I would like that," Mr. Trafalgar said. He smiled at Neo. "Would that be all right with you?"

"I suppose so." Neo looked up at Law. "You'll be there too, right?"

Law nodded. "Of course I will."

"Well, now that we have concluded this lovely meal," Mr. Trafalgar said. "How about you two show us around your lovely home?"

"I think that would be fine," Law said. "Do you feel up to it?"

"Yes." Neo nodded. She looked over at Sanji and Basil.

They both smiled at her. Sanji said, "Go ahead. We'll take care of the dishes."

"I don't want to leave you with them all. There's quite a lot of them," Neo said as she ran her eyes over the empty plates and other dishes on the table.

"Don't worry about it, Neo. It's nothing we can't handle," Basil said.

"And Luffy has enlisted to help," Sanji said. He grabbed the back of his captain's shirt just as the rubber man was running out of the room.

"Hey! Why me?!" Luffy demanded.

"Consider it more punishment for causing trouble earlier today," Sanji said while dragging Luffy over to the sink. "Now fill up the sink with hot water. And do it without causing trouble."

"I think I'd like to get back to our painting lesson," Nami said to Kailen.

"I'd like that as well," Kailen said. The two stood up and headed for the room.

"Paint this time!" Shachi and Penguin called. Laughter rang out through the two rooms as the Elemental and female pirate blushed and made a quicker exit.

"I'd like to help with the dishes if that's all right," Robin said. She picked up her plate and stood up.

"Don't worry about it, Robin, my sweet! I don't want your hands to get all wrinkled! You just leave it to us!" Sanji said with hearts in his eyes.

"I really don't mind. I'd like to help," Robin said with a smile that got Sanji to cave to her.

"Well, if you really want to!" Sanji cooed. He took Robin's hand and led her over to the sink. Grabbing the stool Neo was sitting on earlier, he placed it beside the sink then guided her to it. "Have a seat, my dear. You can dry the dishes for us. That way your hands will stay as lovely and smooth as they are."

"You're too kind," Robin said.

Neo watched as the rest of the crews started to wander away from the dinning room, Shanks paused to give her a peck on the cheek and a whisper of love and encouragement before disappearing from the room. She glanced at Law. He nodded and said, "Let's get started then. Where'd Lami go?"

"There she is," Mr. Trafalgar said, pointing to the other end of the kitchen. The others followed the direction of his finger to find Lami was with Luffy. The Straw Hat captain was leaning over, whispering something into the young girl's ear. She covered her mouth and giggled while nodding.

"What is he up to?" Law asked.

"Knowing him, nothing good. He's probably trying to figure out a way to get Lami outside to see the Snowy Fairies and yeti," Neo said. She wrapped her arms around Law's arm when anger flared up in his chest. She pulled him to her before he could enact his plan of severing Luffy into countless pieces. "Easy now, love. He's not going to get into trouble again. The crews are going to keep a very close eye on him. Why is it you think Sanji is forcing him to do the dishes with them?"

"He's still going to escape," Law said with a frown.

"Possibly. Hey, Luffy?" Neo asked.

"What's up?" Luffy replied. He glanced over at her.

"If you do go outside, please don't aggravate the Snow Fairies or the yeti," Neo said. "If you promise me to behave, I make you a very special meal just for you."

"Really?!" Luffy asked with sparkling eyes.

"Yes." Neo nodded.

"Great! I promise!" Luffy cheered. "I want meat!"

"Is he really going to keep that promise?" Mr. Trafalgar asked as they finally left the room.

"Probably not," Neo said. "But it's worthy a shot. He really loves meat."

"Shall we go then?" Corazon asked.

Law and Neo nodded. They led their special guests out of the room. While giving the tour, Neo let Law do the majority of the talking since he knew these people better than she did. She occasionally spoke up, adding in details of the house that Law left out for her to fill in just to keep her in the conversation, or when she was spoke to directly or asked a question. Mostly she talked to Corazon since she knew him better. Somewhere along the way, she got split up from Law and his family. So it was just her and Corazon for a while.

"This place is extremely impressive," Corazon said as he looked around the room. He was so distracted by all of the books Neo had that he tripped over his own feet. Falling backwards, he expected to land on his backside, but did. He blinked in confusion until he noticed that Neo had summoned her wind crystals and stopped him from hitting the floor. "Thank you, Neo. You're a life saver, and a back saver."

"Glad I could help," Neo said while sitting Corazon back on his feet.

"Law clearly loves you if he went through the trouble of building this house for you," Corazon said.

Neo's cheeks flushed pink. She nodded. "I suppose so. I really didn't mean for him to build such a big house. I was really surprised when he showed the plans to me. I tired to talk him out of it, but he said he wanted this for me. He wanted enough rooms to hold all of our friends and my books. But I love this place and him. It's great. And he's the best."

"Ah, our little boy just loves you so much," Corazon cooed. He took Neo's cheeks in his hands and playfully squished them together. "And how could he not? You're just the cutest thing ever!"

"C-Cora! Stop that!" Neo said from her squished cheeks.

"But I love you too! And you are just the cutest thing ever!" Corazon said. He released her cheeks and wrapped her up in a hug. "I think I'll keep you!"

"I think that'll be hard to do considering everything," Neo said with a bell filled giggle.

"I don't care! I'm keeping you anyway! Law can go take a hike!" Corazon said.

"Hey! She's _my_ wife!" Law protest just as he and his family entered into the library. "You get your hands off of her!"

"Possessive much?" Corazon asked before giving Law a cheeky grin. "Have you forgotten who brought you two together, you little brat?"

"I don't care! You can't keep her!" Law snapped. "Now release her this second!"

"I won't!" Corazon snickered deviously before swooping Neo up into his arms. He then dashed out of the room with a battle cry. "She's mine! All mine!"

"Corazon! You stupid, idiot, klutz! You drop her and I'll kill you!" Law hissed as he followed after the man stealing his love from him.

"Too late for that, Law! I'm already dead!" Corazon called back to him.

"I don't care! I'll still kill you if your drop her!" Law shouted.

Law's family remained in the library. Standing still as they listened to the two men running around the house, screaming at each other. Mr. Trafalgar chuckled. "Well, this is going to be a very interesting stay."

Mrs. Trafalgar just sighed. She crossed her left arm over her chest and rested her hand in the palm of her right hand. Neither of them noticed as their daughter quietly slipped out of the room with a mischievous grin on her face. Mrs. Trafalgar then said, "This can't be good for her."

"Huh? So you do care," Mr. Trafalgar said as he poked his elbow in his wife's ribs.

"Oh, hush! I'm worried about our grandchild! Everything she does it affect the baby! You know that!" Mrs. Trafalgar said. She gave her husband a shove before turning her attention back to the noise that was coming from the other rooms.

"Room! Shambles!" Law's voice called out. It was quickly followed by several crashes and thumped of unidentifiable objects.

"Law!" Corazon shouted. "What are you doing?!"

"I'm going to slice you up if you don't give me her back to me!" Law replied.

"How could you turn those powers on me?!" Corazon asked with fake betray in his voice. "I gave you those powers!"

"You stole the Devil Fruit and gave it to me!" Law said.

"Details, details!" Corazon said.

"You two are so silly!" Neo said as she laughed. "Healer Zinnia's going to maim the both of you!"

"Will you morons knock it off?!" Healer Zinnia's voice then came. "I told you not to get the princess excited! Her blood pressure if up from all this running around!"

"Let go of me!" Law demanded.

"I didn't do anything!" Corazon whined.

"Shut up! You started all of this!" Law snapped.

Mr. and Mrs. Trafalgar exchanged confused looks before stepping out into the hall. Their eyes widened a bit at the sight before them. Law and Corazon were wrapped up in vines while Neo was standing beside the healer.

"You both are to blame!" Healer Zinnia snapped. She tightened her vines around the two men's bodies before adding, "I'm taking the princess with me now! She's going to relax in my office until her check up! No one is to come in there until I say so! Am I understood?!"

Law shot the healer a sharp glare. "She's my wife!"

"I didn't even do anything," Corazon cried with tears running down his cheeks.

"Shut up!" Law snapped again. "We wouldn't be in this mess if you didn't take Neo away from me!"

"We wouldn't be in this mess if you weren't so possessive of her!" Corazon snapped back.

"Oh for heaven sake! You pirates are nothing but children!" Healer Zinnia threw her hands up in the air. She then took Neo's hand and led her away from the _children_. "Come, Princess."

"Uh," Neo drawled. She looked back over her shoulder at Law.

Law growled before warping himself from the vines. He looked at Neo and nodded. _'Go ahead. You could use some rest anyway.'_

' _Okay.'_ Neo pouted but followed along with Healer Zinnia.

"Is it always like this?" Mr. Trafalgar asked no one in particular but Shanks answered him nonetheless when he walked up to them.

"With these people? It sure is," Shanks said. "It might seem like everything is very disorderly, but I assure you these people are the best for your son to be around. They're still young. But they know how to pull through when things get tough, especially when Neo's involved."

"You all really love her, huh?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked.

"We sure do." Shanks nodded with a warm smile on his face as he thought about his goddaughter. He then waved his hand towards the living room. "Would you like to sit down and talk for a while? Sanji has made some fresh coffee for us."

"That would be nice," Mr. Trafalgar said. "We'd love to hear about your adventures and how you came to be Neo's godfather."

"It would be my pleasure," Shanks said.

"I'd like some coffee too," Corazon said, pushing against the vines before Healer Zinnia finally released him. He brushed the wrinkles from his clothes while glaring at Law. "You could have warped me out of there, you know?"

"Why?" Law smirked. "The look suited you."

"Shut up," Corazon grumbled. "It looked good on you too."

Law shrugged.

"Let's go," Shanks said then led the group into the living room where Sanji was pouring them some coffee. The fresh brewed coffee beans filled their noses as they entered the room. They sat down on the couches and chairs around the room. Sanji passed out the steaming beverage before taking a seat himself to settle into listening to everyone talk. Shanks shared his stories of his adventures and how Neo became his goddaughter. The rest of the pirates also took turns in telling stories of their own adventures. All of them reinforced the fact they all loved Neo and how much she loved their son.

…

"I'm sorry I had to remove you from them, Princess," Healer Zinnia said while Neo laid down on the bed in her office. "You're getting far too excited today. I hope you understand."

"It's all right. I understand," Neo replied. She settled into the soft pillow and looked around the low-lit room. The lights were on a dimmer so the healer could easily control how bright her room was. Neo noticed she seemed to like a lower light setting, but most of the time it seem to be when she was in here. Healer Zinnia used every trick to keep her calm during the times the healer thought she needed it. The walls were a soft blue. A few paintings that Kailen did hung on the walls. The healer's desk was neat and orderly, just like the rest of the room. She remembered the healer's workspace back on Luminous was also neat and orderly like this. "I know you're only doing this because you care. Law really does want me to relax too."

Healer Zinnia nodded. She sat down in her chair. Adjusting her glasses, she asked, "So what do you think of his family?"

"Well, Law's sister and dad seem really friendly. I like them," Neo said.

"And his mother?" Healer Zinnia asked when Neo didn't continue.

"I think she's just doing what mothers do," Neo replied. She placed her hand on her stomach. "I probably would do the exact same as she's doing. She loves her son. I can tell. Like I said when we were eating, I love Law. I don't care if she hates me. She doesn't have to like me. As long as I have you all, I'll be fine."

"Of course, Princess," Healer Zinnia said with a smile. "Please, get some rest now."

Neo nodded. She stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes before letting herself drift off. A little while later, she woke up to Law gently coaxing her out of her slumber. He greeted her with a smile before leaning down and capturing her lips with his. He stroked his tongue over hers, tenderly, and several times before allowing her to breath. As she pulled in air passed her lips, he pressed his forehead to hers and brushed their noses together. He said, "You look very beautiful right now. If you weren't going in for a check up, I'd take you up to our room and give you my own personal check up."

Neo giggled. Her soft bells making Law's heart flutter. "And you're still going to do that anyway?"

"Yes. I am," Law said before pecking her lips.

"Good." Neo wrapped her arms around his neck, running her hands through his hair, noticing his hat was conveniently missing from his head at the moment. Law hummed against her lips. He tried to pull away, but she kept him in place and kept pecking his lips as he spoke to her.

"Now, calm _***kiss***_ down, love," Law said through her kisses. "We can _***kiss***_

take this _***kiss***_ up later. _***kiss***_ Right now, _***kiss***_ you need to _***kiss***_ be relaxed _***kiss***_ for your checkup. _***kiss***_ I don't _***kiss***_ want that _***kiss***_ healer woman taking _***kiss***_

you away _***kiss***_ from me again." He jerked away from her when she started threading a vine into his pants. " _Neo._ "

"What?" Neo asked innocently. "You know you want to."

"Yes. But _after_ your check up," Law said. He struggled to keep himself under control when Neo started working her fingers into his hair in an attempt to put him in a trance. He sighed and melted into her touch. He started to lean back down to her lips, but suddenly stopped at the interruption the healer brought them.

"That's enough! You two separate this instant!" Healer Zinnia said, breaking the two lovers apart.

"But-"

"No buts, Princess. To your check up. Now. No arguing," Healer Zinnia ordered. "Mr. and Mrs. Trafalgar are already in the exam room. They've been there for the past hour. And you should have been there five minutes ago."

"Yes, ma'am," Neo said with a pout. She slipped off the bed and headed out of the room.

Law followed after her, earning a glare from Healer Zinnia as he went. He shot one of his own glares back but didn't say anything. The two followed Neo down the hall and into the next room.

Neo walked over to the exam table. Turning her back to it just as Law walked up to her. With his hands on her hips, for security despite being able to fly, he guided her up onto the table. She shot him an improper sexual thought that made his cheeks flush.

"Are you feeling okay, Law?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked. "You look a bit flushed."

"I'm fine, mom," Law said, forcing himself to not become redder than he already was.

Neo snickered at him, which she earned a warning glare from him for it.

"Here," Healer Zinnia said. She held out a white blanket. "Dress up, blanket on."

"Yes, ma'am," Neo said. She wiggled her dress out from underneath her while Law took the blanket and unfolded it. She then laid back on the exam table and Law laid the blanket over her legs and hips.

"This is incredible," Mr. Trafalgar exclaimed. He was hunkered over several medical charts of Neo's. His eyes roamed rapidly over the pages, devouring the words. "I never would have guess it was possible for two different types of beings to be so similar."

"Well, let's get to the check up," Healer Zinnia said.

"Are you going to use human machinery or Elemental, uh…" Mr. Trafalgar asked, bring his attention up from the papers and looked around the room. He recognized several of the machines, but some he didn't know what they were yet.

"I do both," Healer Zinnia said. "Just to double check everything."

"What do you do through your Elemental means?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked.

"It's all done through our crystals," Healer Zinnia replied. She pointed to the crystal screen on the table near the exam bed. "That screen is connected to the crystals the princess has on her stomach. To get the picture to appear, all I have to do is feed a little of my magic into the crystals like so…"

"So fascinating!" Mr. Trafalgar exclaimed when the crystals lit up. Soon an image of the baby was on the screen. "So it's not really all that different from a human sonogram. The picture is more clear too."

"There are some differences. Our crystals are a part of our very existence. So they give a bit more accurate readings than a human sonogram," Healer Zinnia explained. "My magic bounces off the baby's crystals that's within its very existence. That's why it's more accurate."

"I see." Mr. Trafalgar nodded. His eyes were locked onto the crystal screen.

"So why do both then?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked.

"Instructions," Healer Zinnia said while she pointed at Law.

"I want to make sure that everything is okay with both the baby and Neo," Law said. "So I ordered to have them both done. Plus, we can print out pictures on the sonogram."

"Makes sense," Mr. Trafalgar said, pushing up his glasses.

"You want to take over now?" Healer Zinnia asked.

Law nodded. He grabbed the office chair and pulled it closer to the sonogram machine. After gelling up the probe, he placed it on Neo's stomach. Both watched the screen closely before locking eyes with each other. Neo brought her hands up and closed them around Law's wrist.

"It's also another way for mommy and daddy to bond," Healer Zinnia whispered to the old Trafalgar doctors.

"So it would seem," Mr. Trafalgar said with a chuckle. He looked over at his wife, who was standing beside him. He was going to elbow her in the arm, but stopped when he noticed the soft expression on her face. She was staring at the screen before her glistening eyes drifted to Neo and Law. What he saw next in his wife's eyes was acceptance. Their grandchild had melted her heart. He opened his mouth to encourage her to say something to Neo, but was interrupted.

"He's gone!" Chopper and Usopp came shrieking into the room.

"What?! Not again!" Healer Zinnia growled.

"Hm? Come to think of it…we haven't seen Lami in a while either," Mr. Trafalgar said.

"Oh no!" Everyone exclaimed.

"I'm going to kill him!" Law hissed through his gritted teeth.

"Wait! He's just outside!" Neo called just as everyone dashed towards the exit. They all paused and looked back at her. She sat up and slid off the table. "He didn't leave. He's playing with some Snow Fairies. They're having fun."

The group exchanged doubtful looks and headed outside anyway.

"Well, look at that," Healer Zinnia said as she examined the scene before her. Luffy was playing nice with the Snow Fairies. The Snow Fairies were using their magic to create multiple snowmen, igloos, and other snow related sculptures.

The Heart Pirates were also outside. Some were gathering up snowballs and throwing them at each other while others were making snowmen sculptures of their own. Bepo was sculpting a female bear while Shachi and Penguin were carving out very curvy snowwomen and getting scolded by Nami for it.

Suddenly, a snowball came out of nowhere and smacked Law in the head. The surgeon growled and looked for the source of who threw it. He spotted the culprit behind a snow mound. "Cora!"

"Lighten up and have some fun, Law!" Corazon called. "You never did know how to do that!"

"I'll show you fun," Law grumbled. He dusted the snow off his body before forming a Room. Everyone froze. They waited to see what Law would do, but only became confused when all he did was warp himself and Neo away.

"Huh?" Luffy blinked. "Where did they go?"

A minute later, Law and Neo warped back into place. Neo was now dressed in more proper winter attire. Law pointed over at Corazon. "Get him."

Neo summoned her crystals.

"Hey! That's not fair!" Corazon protested.

"Then you shouldn't have started it," Law replied with a sadistic grin.

"Snowball fight!" Luffy and Lami shouted out just before Neo unleashed a mini winter storm on the blonde man.

Not long after that the rest of the pirates who were still inside ventured out to enjoy the playful time in the snow. The area was filled with a blizzard of snowballs as the pirates and doctors split off into various groups. But with so many people, things got confusing and everyone just started throwing snowballs at everyone else. After two hours of pelting each other with snowballs, the group settled down to catch their breaths.

"Let's go on a sleigh ride!" Luffy then shouted.

"Geez. He's just so full of energy, isn't he?" Mrs. Trafalgar said.

"You should travel with him some time," Nami said. "I guarantee you'll never be bored."

"I don't doubt it," Mrs. Trafalgar said.

"But a sleigh ride does sound nice," Mr. Trafalgar said. "It would be very relaxing after that snowball fight."

"I want to ride with Neo!" Lami shouted out.

"Me too!" Chopper said.

"I'd like to ride with Neo as well," Robin said.

"You can count me in," Nami added.

"I think that sounds like a great idea. The women can bond while us guys can talk in another sleigh. Honey, why don't you ride with them as well?" Mr. Trafalgar said.

"Dad, I don't think that-" Law started.

"Oh, hush, son. It's great idea," Mr. Trafalgar said, cutting his son off.

"Yeah! We can bond as well, Law!" Corazon said. He put his arm around Law and pulled him to his side. "I haven't seen you in years!"

"Let go of me!" Law snapped.

"That will be fine, won't it, dear?" Mr. Trafalgar asked.

Neo looked at the man before looking at Law's mom. Her heart fluttered in her chest. She wasn't sure if that was a good idea or not.

"I suppose so," Mrs. Trafalgar replied with a sigh. "Do you have enough horses to pull the sleighs?"

"We don't have horses," Law said, finally prying himself from Corazon's hold.

"What then?" Mrs. Trafalgar asked.

"Reindeer," Law said.

"I'll get the sleighs out!" Franky said while heading around the side of the house with a couple Heart Pirates following. "This will be so super!"

"Are you coming, Godfather?" Neo asked.

"I think I will," Shanks replied. He put his arm around her shoulders and followed the rest of the group around to shed. "It might be fun."

Once around the back of the house, Neo focused on the location of the reindeer. She called twelve reindeer to come pull their sleighs. Just as the reindeer arrived, Franky and the Heart Pirates had the sleighs out of the shed. She helped harness up the reindeer, talking to them calmly to make sure they were really fine with doing this for them before turning to Law. _'Are you sure about this? Your mom still doesn't like me.'_

 _'It'll be fine. And I'll still be with you.'_ Law pressed his lips to her forehead. _'Just relax.'_

 _'Okay.'_ Neo nodded.

"Let's get to it then," Nami said as she, the rest of the women and Chopper climbed into one of the sleighs. "Come on, Neo!"

"Yes. Please do join us," Mrs. Trafalgar said. She patted the empty seat beside her.

An encouraging shove from Law, got Neo to finally move her feet. She glanced back at Law, receiving a wink from him before she climbed up in the sleigh with his hand on her back for support. She, Chopper, and Mrs. Trafalgar sat in the front row. Robin and Nami sat behind them while Topaz and Healer Zinnia sat in the next row.

Luffy and Lami grabbed the front seat of their sleigh, both cheering for the reindeer to get moving. A panicked Usopp quickly got in front with them and took a hold of the reins before either of them could. He said, "No way you two children are taking over driving. We all want to come back alive."

"Aw, come one!" Luffy and Lami whined. Shanks laughed as he, Brook, and Zoro climbed in the sleigh with them.

Sanji and Kailen climbed in with them as well. The cook took the reins and looked at the people with him. "Any mind if I drive?"

"Go ahead," Kailen said.

"It's fine with me," Corazon said as he and Law took their seats in the next row. Behind them were Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin. They murmured off that it was fine with them and sat down.

Then the group was off. The island was lit up with the full moon above them but also from magic glowing balls the Snow Fairies put out for the group that normally lit their homes. Chatter came from everyone as they rode alone the snowy forest. A couple hours later, they came to a stop at the lake on the island to stretch their legs and give the reindeer a rest from pulling them.

"Thanks for the lift," Chopper said to the reindeer. "You all rest now. We're going to hang out here for a while."

"Neo! Neo! Make a snowman with me!" Lami said. She ran over, grabbed Neo's hand, and pulled her towards a nice patch of snow.

"All right," Neo said. The two girls, plus Chopper and Luffy, started rolling around snowballs while the others mingled around doing whatever it is they felt like doing.

"So how's life for you? Living with my brother and all," Lami asked a little while later.

"It's great," Neo replied.

"He doesn't bother you in any kind of way?" Lami asked. "No annoying habits?"

"No," Neo said.

"Really?" Lami asked.

"Yes." Neo nodded.

"Huh. I'm surprised. I figured there would be something about him that bothers you," Lami said.

"Neo's too in love with Law for anything like that to happen," Chopper said. "There are things that get under her skin, but she just doesn't recognize them because she loves him so much."

"Hey!" Neo protested.

"What? It's true," Chopper said. "It's impossible to love everything about a person. But you and Law come very close to doing that."

"Love! Love! They love each other!" Luffy sang as he rolled his very large snowman bottom towards the smaller snowmen.

"That's too big, Luffy!" Usopp protested but helped his captain with the middle section of the snowman.

"Hm," Neo hummed and thought about the reindeer's words. She thought about what she really liked about Law and what bothered her. Not much bothered her. But there were a few little things she could think of. Like how he wanted to treat the crew as subordinates rather than family most of the time. But she could understand that. He was their captain after all. He viewed them differently than she did. She saw them as her family, her babies, because they raised her. He was their captain from the beginning. Her eyes then wondered over to the older Trafalgar woman when she felt the woman's eyes on her. Mrs. Trafalgar was leaning against a tree, watching, and just thinking. Neo flinched a bit when the woman pushed off the tree walked over to her.

"Neo," Mrs. Trafalgar said, her warm breath wafting out over the cold air.

"Yes?" Neo stood up from her little snowman she was working on.

"Walk with me," Mrs. Trafalgar said before heading off from the group.

"Uh…okay," Neo said. She brushed the snow off her jeans and tossed Law a glance before following after the woman. Silently the two women walked along the banks of the lake, the moon glow bouncing off its still surface. She glance over at the woman beside her, wondering why they were out here alone while the voices from the rest of the group faded away from their ears.

"You're probably wondering why I wanted to you come walk with me," Mrs. Trafalgar said.

"Uh…yeah," Neo said nervously.

Mrs. Trafalgar stopped walking. She watched Neo as she stopped walking as well and looked at her. A small chuckle passed over her lips. She said, "You really do get nervous a lot, don't you?"  
"I'm sorry," Neo said. She ducked her head and fiddled with her fingers.

"Don't be. I can understand why you're so skittish," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "But you don't have to be with me. I'm sorry for making you so uncomfortable. Mothers just don't like seeing their sons being taken care of by other women."

"I can understand that," Neo said. She placed her hand on her stomach. "I might be that was as well. Maybe even more so considering how protective I am of my family."

"And there's nothing wrong with that," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "You have done well in taking care of my son. And you are certainly taking care of my grandchild to the best of your ability. I approve."

"Huh?" Neo shot her eyes up to the older woman.

"I know you don't need my approval, but you have it," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "My son loves you very much. And it's obvious you love him just as much."

"Well…I…uh…" Neo stuttered.

Mrs. Trafalgar laughed. "There's no need to be so shy."

"I'm sorry," Neo said. She lowered her eyes and fiddled with her fingers again before looking back up at the woman with a smile.

"There. That's better," Mrs. Trafalgar said. "You have a very lovely smile."

"Thank y-"

"Look out!" Usopp shouted just before a large snowball came flying towards Neo and Law's mom. Neo summoned a couple wind crystals and easily deflected the snowball.

"Oh my," Mrs. Trafalgar exclaimed. She placed a hand over her pounding heart. "Your crystals really do come in handy."

"Are you all right?" Neo asked.

"Yes. Just startled." Mrs. Trafalgar nodded.

"Straw Hat! What were you thinking throwing a snowball that size?!" Law growled. "You could have hurt them!"

"Sorry! I didn't mean to throw it at them!" Luffy shouted as he ran away from an angry Law.

"Get back here! I'm going to kill you!" Law hissed.

"Sorry!"

…

Law sighed as he looked over the two groups of pirates snuggled down into the living room of their home. Neo was sitting beside his mother and sister, being told stories of his childhood and probably some embarrassing stories too since Neo kept glancing over at him and giggling. He chuckled himself. He didn't have too many embarrassing childhood memories for his family to tell her so he wasn't worried. He was glad that his mother had finally relaxed around Neo and became friends with her. A warm feeling of love swelled up in his chest as he watched the people before him.

He turned his eyes out the window. Snow had once again started to fall. They had got back to the house a little over an hour ago. Sanji and Basil made them all some hot chocolate when they returned and they all settled in for some pleasant conversation by a freshly stoked fire. A heavy sadness washed over his chest when he realized this moment wasn't going to last forever. Good things rarely ever lasted very long. He turned his eyes back to his family and friends. He watched them, taking in every smile, every move, every word, every movement, until they started to blur. Sadness filled his body and soul while he watched them fade away.

"Don't be so sad, son," Mr. Trafalgar said. He appeared with his wife and daughter, outlined in a bright white light that was behind them. "You knew this couldn't last forever."

"I know." Law nodded. "I just wish it didn't have to end so soon."

"We're so proud of you, Law," Mrs. Trafalgar said. She walked up to her son and kissed his cheek. "You take very good care of them."

"I will," Law said with another nod.

"I don't want to leave yet!" Lami cried as she grabbed onto her brother's leg. "Neo's so nice! I want to stay!"

"I'm sorry, Lami," Law said. He placed his hand on her hair, ruffling it a bit. "Behave yourself."

"Okay." Lami nodded, brushing away her tears. She released her brother and walked over to their parents. Taking their hands, they all gave Law one last look before walking off into the light.

Law blinked back his tears before turning to the last one standing with him. "Cora."

"You've done well for yourself, Law," Corazon said. "I'm proud of how you have grown up. And I'm proud of how you have taken care of Neo."

"Thanks," Law said. Suddenly, he felt like a child again. A child who missed his parents, sister, and friend. He wanted to stay with them forever.

"You know you can't stay with us, Law. It's not your time yet," Corazon said. "You have other things that need to be done."

"I know." Law nodded.

"Enjoy the time you have. It only last so long," Corazon said as his body faded away from Law's eyes. "See you around, Law…"

…

" _Law…Law?_ Law? Law, wake up now."

"Uh?" Law opened his eyes. Blinking away the blurriness, he looked right at Neo's electric blue eyes. Her eyes held an emotion that he has experienced many times himself but could quite place where or when in his groggy state. "Neo?"

"Are you awake now?" Neo asked. She reached out and cupped his cheek, brushing her thumb over his skin. "Your fever's gone. That's good. I was so worried. I thought it was never going to come down."

"Fever?" Law asked. He kneaded his eyebrows in confusion. Pulling his eyes away from her, he looked around the room. They were in their room back on the sub. "What? Where's our home?"

"Hm? We are home, Law," Neo said. "You were dreaming."

"Dreaming?" Law pushed up on his elbows. "But that's not possible."

Neo opened her lips, but didn't get the chance to speak as Luffy just ran in the room and over to the bed. "Tra! You're awake!"

"Luffy! I told you not to go in there!" Chopper growled from the hallway before running into the room. He glared at his captain then noticed Law awake and looking at him. "Oh! You're awake! I'm so glad! Neo was extremely worried about you!"

"What's going on?" Law asked.

"You don't remember?" Luffy asked. "We were in a fight. You got knocked into the freezing cold ocean and got sick."

"I did?" Law asked. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Well, you didn't get sick right away," Chopper said. He hopped up on the bed, pushing Law back on the pillow before taking his blood pressure and temperature. "It was some time after that. You just started running a very high fever and collapsed. Neo's solar crystal couldn't do much about it either. We were doing all we can to try and figure out what was wrong with you. It turns out that you had been poisoned during that fight. So it wasn't just taking a dip in freezing cold water that made you sick. We didn't know it at first because the amount was so small. It was hard to detect but we managed to find it just in time. Neo then was able to help more with her solar crystal while aiding me with my own medicine. She was so scared. She's been by your side this entire time."

"How long?" Law asked. He looked at Neo again. Finally noticing the emotions in her eyes was concern and fear.

"Three days," Chopper said.

"Three days?" Law asked. Neo nodded, tears stinging her eyes. He reached up and cupped her face. "I'm so sorry, love. I didn't mean to worry you like that."

"It's okay," Neo said. She placed her hand over his, lacing her fingers through his own. "It's not like you did it on purpose. You're fine now. We're fine."

"How did it affect you? How's our baby?" Law asked, his eyes dropping down to her stomach.

"Our baby's fine," Neo said softly.

"I've been monitoring them closely too," Chopper said. "Surprisingly, her blood pressure never went very high. Her staying by your side and everyone else remaining calm helped a lot I think."

"That's good," Law said with a sigh.

"It's great! I'm glad you're feeling better!" Luffy said. "We can go on another adventure now!"

"Shut up, Luffy! Law's not going on any adventures for a while! He needs rest! And you're leaving!" Chopper growled. He grabbed Luffy and pulled him out of the room. He paused at the door and looked back at his patients. "I'll come check on you three later. I'll also inform the crews that you're awake now, but I won't let them come in here for a while. Try and get some sleep now."

"Thanks, Chopper," Neo said. The reindeer smiled at her before closing the door to their room. She then looked back at Law. She could tell he was still trying to process everything so she remained quiet and waited for him to speak.

"It was a dream," Law mumbled.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Neo asked.

"I passed my dream to you, did I?" Law asked.

"A little bit." Neo nodded. "But you were also talking in your sleep."

"I was?" Law asked and Neo nodded again.

"Did they like me?" Neo asked after a pause.

"They loved you," Law said. He ran his hand over her arm before beckoning her to lie down beside him. She snuggled up to his side and looked at him. "It took my mom a while to adjust to some things, but they all loved you very much."

"That's good," Neo said. "So it was a good dream?"

"It was a very good dream. My dreams are always good when you're in them," Law said.

"Cora was there too. Was he fine?"

"He was."

"Will you tell me everything? If you're not too tired."

"I will," Law said as he tightened his hold on her. Snuggled into each other's warmth he told her everything.

…

 **Author's Note: I'm gonna end it here. This chapter was difficult since we don't know how Law's family really is. And my mind is drawing a completely blank on how to fill that info in. If I think of anything to add later I'll come back and put them end. For now this is it. Surprised no one figured out that it was a dream. Shanks had both his arms after all and Lami was still a kid (Sarge1130 noticed that one). ;) Next Christmas special I do I'm gonna think months ahead before posting so I won't draw such huge blanks like I did with this one.**

 **Sarge1130: Nope. No magic this time. Glad you liked it though. Wish I could have added more than what I did. But it's done.**

 **Apple Bloom: I really wanted to do this with his family. Now I did. Next one hopefully will be better.**

 **Silver Pride: Sorry. Not alive, but still there. Hope I didn't disappoint you too much with this.**


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